Pride, Prejudice, and the Open Seas
by SonicSweetie11
Summary: The Open Seas. Pirates. Watch as Elizabeth Bennett gets pulled into a whirlwind of adventure aboard the Georgiana as a prisoner, a deck swabber, and a crew mate under the watchful eye of the mysterious Captain Darcy.
1. Chapter 1

_Summary: The open seas. Pirates. Such things should never cross the mind of a well-mannered lady. But Elizabeth Bennett was neither well-mannered nor, at times, a lady. Watch as she gets pulled into a whirlwind of adventure aboard the Georgiana as a prisoner, a deck swabber, and a crew mate under the watchful eye of the mysterious Captain Darcy._

**A/N: Hi everyone! This is la bella rosa, this is my first story, so go easy on me please! :)**

"Elizabeth Bennett!" Frannie Bennett yelled at her second child. "For goodness sakes child, hurry up! You haven't even started to get ready yet? If you don't start this instant, how will you impress the men at the party? God knows that this could be your last chance to find a good husband! Oh how you affect my poor nerves."

"Thank you mother, for believing in me." Lizzie replied sarcastically as she begrudgingly got up to get dressed. It was best to not argue with her mother, and Lizzie was quickly growing tired of the ball mess. So what if two of the richest men in the country were coming? It's not like Lizzie particularly cared about money. Lizzie knew that if she were to marry, it would be for love, and the only thing she loved was the sea.

But she knew that if she told her darling mother, she would have to suffer from hearing her hour-long rants about her frayed nerves and distress about having a daughter that was a disappointment. And frankly, Lizzie didn't have the energy to listen to it. She'd been listening to it for 18 years.

She quickly shut the door to the washroom and stepped into the bathtub. The warm water relaxed her muscles and she imagined herself sailing on the high seas, escaping from the stuffy town and being free from all the restraints of society.

She submerged her head underwater and just listened to the silence that surrounded her. She momentary peace was interrupted by a loud banging noise. Her head popped up just in time to hear the shrill voice of her mother reprimanding her of taking too long in the bath and the slam of the bathroom door.

Sighing, Lizzie stepped out, got dry, and braced herself for the chaos that she was about to become part of. She looked out the window. _Last chance to escape now_. She internally shook her head. Last time she escaped, her mother nearly popped a vein.

She peeked out of her bathroom door. Luckily, her room was empty; her mother was probably fussing about something to Lydia or Kate, whom preferred Kitty and Liddy and were just about as close to twins as you could get, different birthdays and faces put aside, were probably excitedly chatting about the rich and eligible men that were going to be present at the party. They were only 13 for heaven's sake, and they were the biggest flirts she'd ever seen.

Lizzie stared at the dress that was laid out on the bed. It was gorgeous and perfect for her, but the thought of being in a tight, restraining dress made her mentally wince. She definitely preferred donning on a pair of breeches and a shirt. Honestly, what was the point of all the folds of cloth?

"Lizzie! What are you doing, still standing there over your dress? Time to get changed!" Her mother rushed into the room and tried to help Lizzie put on her dress.

"Mother. I can do this myself." She complained, but her mother heard naught a word. "Mother. Mother! I'm perfectly capable of dressing myself. I'm 18 years old."

"And still unmarried." Fanny Bennett mumbled.

"Mother! I am quite aware that I'm currently unattached, seeing as you have reminded me everyday of that fact. Please let me dress myself." Lizzie said through gritted teeth.

Fanny sighed dramatically before walking out the door. Lizzie smirked when she heard her mother's complaints as she made her way down the hallway.

----

Lizzie felt like a piece of meat, or perhaps a horse being auctioned off to the best buyer. She could feel the eyes of the nasty suitors following her as she made her way through the crowd to her sister.

From across the room, she heard her mother's annoying giggles as she laughed at some snotty gentleman's probably not-so-funny joke. Her little sisters Kate and Lydia (Lizzie refused to call them by their preferred nicknames; they sounded like a wench's name) were flirting with a man that seemed even too old for Lizzie. Mary, Lizzie's other sister, was sitting all alone in the corner. Lizzie felt pity for Mary, who was the shyest of the sisters and didn't have to courage to ask anyone to dance.

Lizzie went up to a young man that was about Mary's age that Lizzie noticed had been watching Mary out of the corner of his eye. "If you like her, go ask her." She whispered.

Lizzie walked off before she could see the look of surprise and wonder on the young lad's face. She did, however, see the grateful look on his face that he flashed towards her when he led her dear sister off to the dance floor.

Lizzie returned her attention to finding Jane, whom her mother insisted was the "beauty and savior of the family," the one who would save the whole family from ruin once her father died and had to leave all his belongings to a distant cousin, the only eligible male heir of the family. Jane was indeed beautiful and had many suitors practically drooling after her. Her sweet nature and innocence, along with her beautiful blonde hair and calm hazel eyes drew everyone towards her. Lizzie was not at all surprised to find her dancing with a young handsome lad in the middle of the room, laughing and dancing the night away.

Lizzie, short for Elizabeth, was in no way ugly, but she couldn't hold a light up to her sister. She knew she was somewhat plain, with her brown hair and brown eyes, but what she lacked in looks, she made up with her witty personality and sharp tongue. Men were often drawn to her adventurous side and wished to be the first to "tame the lioness" in Lizzie. But Lizzie would quickly set them straight and packing with their tails in between their legs.

Lizzie had quite the notorious record, not that anyone knew about it. They had their suspicions that Lizzie was the famous "Lance" that got into fights in the streets. Many underestimated the skinny little boy that had the confidence of a giant, but they soon found themselves on their backs, staring into the smirking face of the young lad that wielded his sword and dagger like a whip.

And why would Lizzie do such a thing and put her life in danger?

Lizzie lived for adventure. She absolutely loathed the life of a lady, being restrained by society and the tight corset that bound her. Ever since her father and told her stories of the high seas and adventures that he had embarked on as a young lad, she promised herself that she would do the same.

Lizzie Bennett was without a doubt Edward Bennett's favorite daughter. She was sweet and caring, but was also like the son he never had. No one was good enough for Lizzie, and to Lizzie's delight, he rejected every sniveling suitor that asked for his permission to court his daughter, much to Frannie's horror.

Lizzie knew that her parent's marriage was more of convenience than of love. Her mother was, as her father has explained, gorgeous and much sought after, and her father was extremely rich. Her father needed a wife to get his parents off of his back, and Frannie wanted an advantageous marriage. It was the perfect business transaction.

Of course, needless to say, Frannie's ideals and Edward's actions clashed constantly, but the two had learned to tolerate each other.

And because of growing up and listening to her parent's arguments, Lizzie had promised herself that if she were to marry, she would marry for love. But by her experience in meeting men, she was sure it would never happen.

Especially at this very moment, when a Mr. Collins had permanently attached himself to Lizzie's side and began to twitter on and on about his patron and whatnot, making Lizzie want to jump out the window and never come back.

It was when she noticed that the annoying parrot had stopped his incessant chattering that Lizzie managed to slip away from him, only to find herself face to face, no, face to chest, as Lizzie was much shorter, to a man who had the air of an aristocrat, and apparently a fortune to back it up. She looked up to find him looking disapprovingly at her, as if breathing on his expensive coat would ruin it and he had to buy a new one, not that he couldn't afford it, but it was more of an inconvenience. Lizzie looked up at him defiantly, and smirked when she saw a flash of surprise in his eye before the prideful mask returned on his face. He pushed past Lizzie without a word.

----

Days following the ball, Lizzie found herself in the company of Jane's admirer, a Duke Bingley, who seemed endearing and sweet, the perfect match for her sister.

Lizzie was happy to accompany Jane to tea, after all, she had to make sure that he was good enough for her. And with a mother who thought fortune was the most important characteristic to a marriage and a father that was often away on business, Lizzie was the only one that could look out for her sister.

After tea, Lizzie concluded that he was the perfect man for Jane. He was good hearted and seemed very aware of Jane's actions, and Lizzie caught him staring at Jane with a look of adoration.

Lizzie definitely approved and was extremely happy for her sister.

Lizzie, on the other hand, didn't have luck on her side.

After her sister had summoned up the courage to go on an outing with the Duke by herself, Lizzie was stuck at home with Mr. Collins, the disgusting merchant that had followed her around at the ball. Lizzie no longer had the excuse of Jane to use when he called upon her for tea.

Not that her mother helped her escape, of course.

"Lizzie darling, you must give that _wonderful _man a chance!" Lizzie gagged at the word 'wonderful.' " He's been requesting your time for a week! You must take your own happiness into account. Jane's already found hers!"

And because of her annoying and meddling mother, she was stuck having tea with probably the most annoying and outrageous man in all of England.

After about half an hour, Lizzie had to excuse herself for a headache, and she wasn't lying this time.

But luck once again wasn't on her side.

"Wait, Elizabeth." Mr. Collins said. "May I call you Lizzie?"

Lizzie nodded, willing to do anything to make the insufferable man leave.

"I know that we've just known each other for a week, but it seems I've known you before I met you. You're a beautiful woman, just the type of woman I'm looking for. I haven't asked your father yet, for he's gone for business, as you know already." Lizzie snorted. Of course she knew her father wasn't present. "I've already asked your mother, and she's happily agreed." Lizzie felt her face morph into horror. Anything that Frannie may agreed on was bad, for it only involved one thing.

"Will you do me the honor of marriage, Elizabeth?"

Lizzie couldn't help the bubble of laughter that was swelling in her chest. Seconds later, she was full out, on the floor, laughing her arse off. It wasn't very ladylike, but frankly, Lizzie didn't give a damn.

"I'm assuming that a yes, Lizzie?"

Lizzie's laughter abruptly stopped. "No."

Mr. Collins smiled. "I'm sure your mother will be delighted, and I have no reason to think that your father would disapprove.

Lizzie glared at him straight in the eye. "No."

"I know you ladies love to play this little game, so I'll play along. I'll be coming everyday to check on you, my dear Lizzie."

"Collins!" Lizzie yelled, her eyes on fire and her voice dangerously low. It was this side of Lizzie that she rarely showed, and usually when she was like this, she was dressed like "Lance," and someone was going to get hurt. "I will not marry you, and I never will. Leave this house, and never come back."

Lizzie stomped out the door, leaving a shocked Collins in her wake.

She slammed the door to her room and sat on the bed, tears of frustration leaking from her eyes. She couldn't help it, after all, she was so frustrated by herself, how she had the ability to attract such pieces of swine, and at her mother, who wished to auction her off to the highest bidder, as if she were some filthy wench.

"ELIZABETH BENNETT! You ungrateful child! Go apologize to Mr. Collins right now and say that you will marry him!" Frannie's shrill voice sounded from outside the door. "He's such a sweet man! And he's rich! You'll be well taken cared of for the rest of your life!"

Lizzie grit her teeth and ignored her mother. Lizzie walked over to her dresser and pulled out a piece of parchment and began writing her letter. She smiled; it was the first time that Lizzie was sure of something in her life.

"He's well endowed and handsome! Go tell him right now Lizzie! Or I shall never speak to you again!"

Lizzie smiled sadly as she remembered the words her father had spoken to her before he left for his business trip. "Lizzie, if you ever listen to your mother about marrying a silly man, I shall never speak to you again. Do what you want to do, not your what your silly mother wishes you to do, and know that I will support you in whatever you endeavor to do in life."

She slipped her letter in a slit in the wall, where she knew her father would find it, and quickly changed into her male clothes. She donned her cap after tying her long, brown hair back and brought the emergency money she had hidden in a niche in the wall. Opening the window to her room, she yelled to her mother, who was still beyond the door, "Goodbye mother! Tell Janie I love her!"

When Frannie finally managed to knock her door down, a cold wind blew through the open window, and Lizzie was nowhere to be seen.

When Edward Bennett returned home a week later and found the letter Lizzie hid in a place only he knew about, he looked out the window and smiled.

"Good luck Lizzie-bear."

_____

"Lance! Make sure the riggings are tight!" The captain barked orders towards the young lad.

Lance, a young boy was quickly gaining trust among the other men on the boat for his quick tongue and his skills of the sword. She was immediately assigned to the crow's nest, for she was quick to climb and had keen eyesight. They ignored his questionable background, which he guarded with his life, and welcomed him to the crew.

Of course, Lance had good reason to hide his background, considering that being on a ship with a crew of men was dangerous. After all, "he" was a "her". And the superstitions about a woman on a ship being bad luck would probably ruin the respect she'd gained from the crew.

So, Lizzie Bennett, after escaping her home in Longbourn, bound her chest and signed up for a spot on the famous merchant ship, _The Pride. _

Lizzie didn't care so much about the fame of the ship, but rather the stories that came with the ship. There was a long history of pirate attacks, and just hearing about pirates caused tingles of anticipation down Lizzie's back.

A series of loud yells echoed from the deck, causing Lizzie to snap out of her thoughts.

"Shit!" She swore as she realized what her crewmembers were yelling. It was a pirate attack, and she had been too distracted to notice.

"LANCE! What the hell were you doing up there? I didn't hire you to sleep on the job! Or would you rather sleep with the fishes once the pirates are done chopping us into bits?"

Lizzie knew something was wrong. "Why're you so worried, captain?"

"It's _the Georgiana_." The captain replied with a shaky voice.

Lizzie snorted. The name of ship didn't render her shaking in her boots. _The Georgiana. Ooh Scary. _

The captain stared at her harshly. "You don't understand Lance. The Georgiana is the most notorious pirate ship out there. No ship has ever survived the attack."

"So that's it? We're just going to surrender? Like a bunch of cowards?"

The captain glared at her. "Did I say that, Lance? We're going to fight until the death. This ship was my grandfather's, and I will stand with it, even when it's resting on the bottom of the sea. "

Lizzie smiled, feeling tears in her eyes.

"Are you going soft on me now, lad? Go on! Grab your weapons!"

Lizzie smirked. "Ay, ay captain."

---

The captain of the Georgiana stood with his eyes closed, feeling the sea air blow into his face. He was minutes from battle, and he could feel the adrenaline coursing through his veins. It had been a while since his crew had had any plunder, and they were just as anxious for it. He had just been back at port for a week, and the thought of insufferable parties and outings that his aunt would put him through had him itching to come back to the ship the moment he stepped off of it.

The sea calmed him and relaxed him. He didn't have to worry about the restraints of society or acting like a gentleman. The sea was his home, and being on land always made him irritated and it often showed in his behavior. He didn't care though. Let them think what they think.

"Captain, the other ship is loading their cannons." His first mate said.

He merely nodded, signaling that the crew get ready to face the other ship.

He watched as his crew threw a plank onto the other ship. He smirked as the other crew tried to attack his, but he knew that his crew was much more trained and talented. He boarded the other ship and drew his sword. _The Pride_'s crew was trained, but not well trained enough to go against his experienced crew.

The captain frowned when he heard familiar yells coming from one part of the ship. He knocked down his opponent and walked up to the Quarter Deck, surveying his crew's work. He was surprised to find that most of _The Pride_'s crew had been bound, save for two that were left standing in the middle of his crew. They surrounded them, and the two were standing back to back. One was a man whom he assumed was the captain, probably in his 50s, and a young lad, who didn't look a day over 14.

_What a strange pair. _The captain thought as he watched the scene with interest.

The two were fighting against four of his crewmembers. He frowned, but not at how unfair the fight was. He was a pirate, after all, and fighting fair wasn't exactly at the top of his list. He frowned at how four men couldn't take care of an old man and a scrawny kid. Perhaps the two were more than they seemed.

The two were forced to separate as each took on two pirates each. The old man was very skilled, and had years of experience. But what peaked the captain's interest the most was the kid. The kid was swift, mostly because he was very small, and could maneuver around the large pirates that surrounded him. He also had the skill equal to a master swordsman. Not as good as himself, of course, but he would be a good opponent.

He found himself mesmerized by how lithe and fast the boy moved and how slow and untrained his crew seemed compared to him. He was an exceptional swordsman, and if he was willing to beg for his life, the captain was willing to make him part of the crew. After all, it was very difficult to find someone that skilled at the sword. Such a skill would be most welcomed on his ship, if he was willing to promise his loyalty, of course.

Suddenly, he heard a thud as the old man fell onto the deck and was immediately tied and gagged by the surrounding men. The young boy threw his head around and the captain could see the look of shock and horror on his face.

He felt his own face morph into confusion when he saw the familiar face. But where could he have seen such a boy? He knew that he would've remembered someone like him.

The captain saw him wince as a sword cut him in the shoulder, but he never slowed as he battled the uneven battle. It was two against one now; the boy had somehow managed to knock down two of his mates. The captain laughed. The boy had hit them hard where it hurt the most.

Finally sick of standing back and watching, the captain descended from the stairs. The boy's head whirled around again as he heard the creak of the stairs, the momentary distraction just enough for the two fighting pirates to knock him on his knees and to point the tip of the sword at his neck.

The boy glared at the two pirates before looking defiantly up at the captain of the pirate ship.

Their eyes met, and the captain stopped dead in his tracks.

He glared back. "Take him back onto the ship!" he barked at his crewmembers without hesitation. "And pillage and take whatever you want. Kill everyone and burn the ship."

"NO!" The boy yelled, tears flowing down onto his cheeks. He tried to run towards the old man, but before he made it, his crewmembers already slit his throat. He dropped to the ground and didn't move, before another two dragged him onto the ship.

The captain turned around and followed, anger lacing each step.

____

Lance (Lizzie) Bennett felt herself being dragged away by the burly men, but she didn't care. She couldn't move. All she could do was play back the scene she had just witnessed. The captain of _the Pride_, the man that reminded her of her father so much, had just been killed right in front of her. The nonchalance on the pirate's face chilled her to the core.

She didn't even hear the muffled screams of her other crewmembers as the pirates went through and slew them.

_Why am I still alive? _

She didn't understand why she was still alive. But since she was, she was going to escape. The pirates obviously weren't friendly; they didn't bring her onto the ship to have a cup of tea and send her on her merry way. She knew that if she didn't do something, she'd die.

The low voice of the captain snapped her out of her plans. "Throw him in the brig."

"Wait!" She yelled out.

The captain turned around. "What?" he demanded, his voice laced with malice.

"Why am I not dead?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Would you like to be?"

"That's a stupid question."

"Oh?"

"Doesn't everyone want to live? Doesn't everyone wish to be free to live and do what the love or want to do?"

The captain remained emotionless.

"Yes, no one would _choose _death over life."

The captain turned around and started towards his cabin.

"What right do you have to take away someone's life?" She choked out.

The captain whirled around, only to reel in with surprise when he saw tears streaming down the boy's cheeks.

He turned around again and didn't look back as she yelled at his retreating figure.

"You're horrible! You're a menace, a monster!"

The captain turned to face her again. "Yes, I'm a monster. What'd you expect? A noble? A prince? This is a pirate ship lad. Not a tea party. Welcome to _the Georgiana_. "

"Such a beautiful ship should not be in the hands of a filthy pirate." The captain slapped her hard, drawing blood.

She spit it in his face. "Fuck you."

He snarled. "Take him to the brig. No one is to touch him."

**A/N: Please review and I'll post another chapter! I'm not sure about this story, so your reviews will convince me on whether or not I should continue it! Thanks for reading! Until next time? **


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hi everyone! I'm just floored by the positive feedback I've gotten so far, so I just wanted to thank everyone who's read this story by putting up this chapter. I apologize for it being shorter than the last chapter, but I this is where I really wanted to stop. I've finished writing chapter 3 already; I'll put it up sometime next week? **

**I want to thank And we danced in the rain23, StoryAddict, Lost-puppyEyes, The World of My Creation, Who is Toast, OllyGoughBritely, jkmk, MAB35, Gally 619, and Avanell for your reviews! It's because you guys that I've decided to continue this story!**

**Disclaimer: I am not Jane Austen, and I don't own any of her wonderfully witty Elizabeth Bennett, or extremely hot William Darcy, or any of the characters you recognize in this story!**

Last chapter:

_The captain turned to face her again. "Yes, I'm a monster. What'd you expect? A noble? A prince? This is a pirate ship lad. Not a tea party. Welcome to the Georgiana. "_

"_Such a beautiful ship should not be in the hands of a filthy pirate." The captain slapped her hard, drawing blood._

_She spit it in his face. "Fuck you."_

_He snarled. "Take him to the brig. No one is to touch him." _

___

Apparently pirates know how to bend the rules. A group of pirates, two of them were the ones that she had knocked out, came to harass her everyday. They'd threaten beat her through the bars, but she knew they were empty threats, and would taunt her as she sat there, throwing insults back at them. They were wasted on them, however, for most of them didn't understand what she was saying. Their brains were probably the size of peas. Or nonexistent.

To say that she was bored was an understatement. She longed for some intelligent conversation, a cup of tea, and a good book. The wall wasn't a very good conversationalist. However, the wall was definitely more interesting than most of the crewmembers. Their lame attempt at insulting her with "shrimp," or "fish food" bounced off of her and only succeeded in making her roll her eyes towards the direction of the stupid pirates.

She knew she could escape whenever she wanted; she had a pin that she kept in her hair at all times, but she wasn't sure where she would escape to. How could she escape off of a ship in the middle of the ocean? She couldn't very well swim for god knows how many miles to land. She had considered sneaking into the captain's cabin and threatening him, but she knew without a distraction, she'd be spotted and dragged right back into the smelly cell before she could say "crumpet."

Nevertheless, Lizzie loved to take risks, and even though her plan had a success rate of 0.01%, she still went for it. And perhaps they'd be close to land. She doubted it. But hey, it was worth a shot.

Needless to say, she was dragged back into her cell within five minutes. With her luck, the thug she had kicked in the family jewels had seen her sneaking out, and he apparently hadn't forgiven her for it. Even when she had suggested a kind "No hard feelings, right?" he merely grunted and dragged her back to the cell. Apparently pirates liked holding grudges. _Geez_.

She tried again two days later, but was dragged back within two minutes. Apparently the captain had gotten word of it and told his crew to watch out for her. This happened another five times, until the captain finally paid a personal visit to her lovely jail cell. _Oh what an honor_.

"Can you stay in here or do I have to bind you?" He growled out.

"Or you can let me work."

"What? Why would I let you do that?"

"Because I'm a skilled worker. And plus even if you tied me up, I'd still find a way to escape."

"Or maybe I should feed you to the fishes."

"You wouldn't do that." She said confidently.

"Really?"

"You wouldn't have waited this long. Besides, with my amazing wit and endless intelligence, I'd find a way to get back on this ship."

The captain remained emotionless.

"I may not like you at all, but I hate to see such a beautiful ship in the horrible condition you keep her in."

She saw the captain's eye twitch.

"You have gaping holes in your mast."

His normal blank stare looked back at her.

"Plus your deck looks like it hasn't been cleaned since your great-great grandfather was alive."

She saw the captain's lip twitch.

"The food tastes like horse dung."

"And I suppose you know what horse dung tastes like?"

Lizzie made a face. "I shall never disclose my secrets."

The captain's lip twitched again.

They stared at each other for a few minutes, until the captain finally gave in.

"Alright. Fitz!" he barked. A middle-aged man with brown hair sauntered over with a bright smile on his face. Lizzie decided that she liked this man, pirate or not.

"Take it. It's under your orders."

"Oh, I'm an 'it' now? Gee thanks." Lizzie muttered sarcastically.

The captain didn't say anything.

"Can't I take the crow's nest?"

"No. You'll lead us into a storm for all I know."

"Then you're a horrible and extremely stupid captain."

The man named Fitz threw his head back with laughter. "I like you lad."

The captain rolled his eyes and walked out of the cell.

____

Lizzie grunted as she lifted the ninth bucket up to the deck. She was really beginning to dislike Fitz. He had immediately given her the near impossible task of scrubbing the decks, and the crew wasn't making it any easier for her. They had spit on the deck whenever she'd cleaned one area, and she was really tempted to knock them out with a bucket. She knew she was capable of doing so.

She groaned as the muscles in her back cramped up as she bent down again.

Two hours later, Lizzie collapsed on the ground, exhausted. She'd finally finished one part of the ship. The ship was squeaky clean after she removed many, many years of dirt, grime, spit, and most likely blood. She was about to doze off when she heard Fitz's arguing with the captain.

"Why don't you just give the lad a chance? He's a very hard-worker."

"I'll give him a chance once he shows that he's capable of having responsibility."

"He's cleaned the deck. Come on Darcy, you know that this deck hasn't been this clean since it was made! He's willing to try!"

"I don't trust a boy who glares at me everything I walk by."

"Well, you're not exactly a ball of sunshine when it comes to meeting new people." Lizzie snorted. That was an understatement.

"I'm his captain. I demand respect."

"Come on Darce! Just give him a chance."

"No. I don't even know why I decided to spare his life. He's not skilled at anything, and he's incapable of being of any help on this ship. He's becoming more of a nuisance."

"Aw. Don't say that Darce."

"Captain."

"You know I don't call you that. We're cousins Darce." Fitz patted him on the back cheerfully.

The captain didn't say anything.

Lizzie ignored her protesting muscles as she picked herself up, grabbed the damn bucket and mop, and proceeded to walk past the captain and Fitz, towards the other side of the boat, making sure the mop, which she was holding upside down, hit the back of the Captain's head as she walked by. She heard a pleasant squelch noise as it hit his head, and a loud curse as the Captain reacted to the nasty mop that had just surprise attacked him from behind.

Lizzie smirked.

_That'll show him. _

_---_

Days passed, and Lizzie was beginning to earn the respect of some of the pirates.

Well, maybe not respect, but they certainly stopped calling her "fish food" or "shrimp," so she considered that a big step already.

On the other hand, she ignored her captain, often finding ways around his orders until she was finally assigned to the crow's nest. She was convinced that he only assigned her there so that she would be as far away from him as possible. But hey, she wasn't going to complain. It certainly made hiding her gender much easier. She often stayed there till nightfall, sometimes even sleeping up there. It took some getting used to, but after stealing some pillows, she had made the crow's nest her own personal space.

She was very good at spotting things off the distance; her perfect vision allowed her to see things from farther away than anyone else on the ship. Even the Captain knew it. He just would never admit it.

But even the best watcher makes mistakes, and surprises come when you least expect it.

Lizzie woke up from a nap in the crow's nest hearing the Captain yelling at her from the deck.

"Lance! What've you been doing up there? You're supposed to watch out for the ship! Not drive us into a storm!"

Lizzie dropped down the crow's nest by sliding down a rigging.

"A storm? It was bright and sunny two hours ago!"

"Well it's obviously not anymore!"

Lizzie jumped when she heard the loud rumble of thunder and the bright flash of lightning.

Apparently most of the shipmates were just as shocked by the sudden thunderstorm and they rushed out of the cabins and went to make themselves useful.

It was going to a nasty storm.

"Lance! Get below deck." The captain barked at him.

"Why? I'm a member of this ship. I'm going to help."

"You won't be of any help when you're sitting on the bottom of the ocean. Now go below deck."

Lizzie glared at him and stayed put. "Since I'm just a nuisance and have no skill, wouldn't it be better if I were to die in this storm? You'd be rid of me."

"Get below deck. NOW."

Lizzie stood her ground.

"FITZ! Get him below deck. And make sure he doesn't leave until the storm is over."

Lizzie struggled against Fitz's strong grip as he dragged her below deck.

"Sorry mate. Captain always has his reasons." Fitz smiled apologetically as he threw her into the room before running back up to help the other crewmembers on the deck, but not before locking the damn door.

The boat lurched and Lizzie fell against the locked door, bashing her shoulder. That was going to hurt in the morning. It was one hell of a storm, and she knew that it must've been utter chaos on deck. She heard the creaking of the ship as it struggled against the mighty force of the ocean.

It was an ongoing battle between the ship and the ocean, and Lizzie was stuck below deck, swaying, struggling to keep balance.

She heard men shouting up above and she cursed the captain for locking her below deck in the storage closet next to the kitchen.

It also didn't help that she was claustrophobic. On a ship. In the middle of a storm. In a dark, enclosed room without windows. She couldn't help but wonder what would happen if the ship sunk, and she was stuck in this room. She'd really become fish food.

Lizzie's breathing quickened. Her heart was beating out of her chest. Her eyes grew wide and tears streamed down her face as she frantically looked around the tiny, dark space.

She had to get out.

Reaching for the pin in her hair again, she quickly unlocked the door. No one heard the loud bang when the door slammed into the wall as Lizzie escaped. She ran on the deck and was immediately drenched by the rain.

The waves continually bashed into the ship, threatening to overturn it. It was worse than she imagined. The crewmembers were running around, trying to help, even though they didn't know what to do. It was utter chaos. She quickly grabbed a rigging that threatened to loosen and pulled, trying to tighten it, only to drop the rope as her shoulder protested.

"Lance!" The captain yelled. "What the hell are you doing on deck? Why didn't you stay where I told you to?!" The captain inquired angrily, grabbing the rigging that she had let go of.

"I don't like being out of the action." Lizzie said defiantly, her voice faltering, revealing how truly terrified she was. A shocking combination of thunder and lightning illuminated the ground long enough for him to see the fear in her eyes. He knew something was wrong.

His hand moved towards the rope around his waist. "There's no time to find another rope for you."

Both of them froze when they heard the roar of a wave. The brief lightning flash allowed them to see briefly how high the wave was.

Lizzie looked at the captain who was wide-eyed and staring right back at her. She saw horror in his eyes a mere second before the wave crashed down on the ship.

____ (Darcy POV)

_Shit! _He lunged forward and reached out for the lad's hand, but the water reached the ship and engulfed everything. He couldn't see anything, and by the time the water retreated, the boy was gone. Cursing under his breath, he quickly untied his rope and jumped overboard.

It was a stupid move, and he knew that he might not make it out of this alive, but he had to save her.

He went underwater, looking frantically around for the boy.

"Lance!" he yelled.

His head went down again. Nothing.

"Lance!"

He ducked down underwater quickly before another wave knocked into him.

"Damn it! ELIZABETH!"

It was then he saw something sinking. Squinting underwater, he swam towards it.

_Elizabeth!_

He grabbed her and quickly brought her above water.

"Hold on Elizabeth!"

**A/N: Uh oh! Did you see that coming? Hmm how did Darcy find out? I don't know, I guess you'll just have to review and tell me your ideas on how you think he found out and I'll think about revealing that information to you in the next chapter! **

**The same goes everyone! Please review and I'll love you forever and always!**

**Until next chapter! **


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Hi! It's me again! I'm so shocked by the amount of reviews I've gotten so far; they all made me smile! Every review I get, I do a little happy dance, kinda like the one in **_**The Ugly Truth **_**when the doctor guy finally asks her out through the door.**

**Last time I asked you guys to guess how Darcy knew Lizzie was a girl. Some of you guess right! And as promised, you'll find out how he recognized her.**

**So, I live in Texas, in the State that NEVER snows. Like, ever. But today, there was a HUGE snowstorm and it's been snowing all day. I'm a super excited and I have no school tomorrow so I'm hoping to get some more writing done. **

**The next couple of weeks are really busy for me, I have a bunch of swim meets coming up and so it may take longer than expected to update, so I'm apologizing in advanced!**

**So same goes, Please read and review! **

**Thank you so much for your reviews, I love hearing from you guys!**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Pride and Prejudice, sadly. This amazing book belongs to the one and only Jane Austen.**

_Previously, on Pride, Prejudice, and the Open Seas:_

"_Damn it! ELIZABETH!"_

_It was then he saw something sinking. Squinting underwater, he swam towards it._

_Elizabeth!_

_He grabbed her and quickly brought her above water._

"_Hold on Elizabeth!"_

**Chapter 3: Unknown**

The storm had calmed, and Fitzwilliam, first mate, was running around giving orders. He quickly did a headcount. 14 men. Good. One was in the closet, and counting him was 16. He looked for the captain to confirm that everyone was on the ship.

"Darce!"

No answer.

"Yo! Darcy!"

Okay, that wasn't good.

He asked the crewmembers if they'd seen the captain.

Nope. They all shook their heads. _Shit_.

"Fitz!"

The first mate whirled around.

"Fitz!" He frantically searched for the source of the voice.

"Fitz! You stupid mangy dog! Throw a line down!"

He sprinted towards the side of the ship, only to find the missing captain with… Lance?

Leaving the questioning for later, he quickly grabbed a rope and threw it down, beckoning everyone to help him get the captain back on board.

The captain grunted as he hit the ship deck with the young lad in tow. "Elizabeth!"

_Who's the hell is Elizabeth? _Fitz wondered.

His eyes went to the lad. It couldn't be… Lance… was a girl?

It seemed that everyone around him had come to the same conclusion, some a little slower than others, but they realized nonetheless, that there was a female on the ship.

Fitz watched in shock as the captain checked his-her breathing. He saw the panic in his eyes as he realized that he-she wasn't breathing. His usually calm and collected cousin frantically pounded on her chest to get the water out of her lungs and breathed a sigh of relief as she started coughing up water, and then promptly fainted in his arms. The captain picked her up and started towards his room.

There was a female. On the ship. Who the captain had just saved from a storm. And was now in the captain's quarters.

What the hell?

"Fitz. Give me some dry clothes." The captain ordered as he walked towards his cabin.

Fitz ran quickly to his Captain's side. "Uh… Darce. I know that I've never doubted your judgment before, but shouldn't you explain to the crew members first?"

The captain didn't say anything.

"Um. Clean, dry clothes it is." Fitz rushed off to fulfill his order.

The crew was in an uproar. A woman on the ship?

----

Lizzie woke up to muffled arguing. _Ugh were her sisters arguing again? _

"Lydia, shut up!" She grumbled out as she grabbed the pillow and used it to cover her ears.

A dry chuckle that was _definitely _not her sister's woke Lizzie up and caused her to shoot up from the bed. That action, however, definitely wasn't smart, causing her to lose her equilibrium as she staggered and promptly collapsed into the arms of said chuckler, who had rushed over.

"I wouldn't get up yet if I were you. You haven't eaten in 2 days." The chuckler mumbled as he set her down on the bed.

Her eyes popped open as she realized who was holding her. "That's okay. I didn't miss out much on the slops that your cook calls food."

She saw the captain raise an eyebrow at her before thrusting a bowl of food towards her. "Your tongue is going to get you in trouble some day. How is it still not subdued, after you almost died two days ago?" She merely shrugged before wolfing down the contents of the bowl, despite its questionable background. She was surprised to find that she was starving.

The room turned silent, as Lizzie devoured the stew that the Captain had given her and the Captain sat on the edge of her bed with a faraway look on his face. Lizzie couldn't help but look at her Captain as he sat so closely to her. As if feeling her eyes on him, he quickly turned his head to meet her stare. She was taken aback at the ice she saw in his piercing blue eyes. "So are you going to tell me why there's a woman on my ship, laying on my bed, whose arse I had to save from the ocean?" The captain's voice turned deadly.

The sudden revealing of the fact that the captain somehow found out she was a woman caused Lizzie to choke up the last bit of mush she had wolfed down two seconds ago.

"W…what?" She said in between coughs.

"You heard me." The captain stood up and towered over Lizzie, who was still leaning against the wall on the bed. "Why is there a _woman _on my ship, _Lance_?" He hissed the name out as if it was a poison. At the mention of her alter ego's name, Lizzie snapped out of it, her defenses quickly snapping into place as anger bubbled inside of her.

"And how did you find out about this piece of information, captain?" She glared back. The captain's deep blue eyes opened wide with shock.

"Do you really think I took advantage of you?" He gasped, stepping back.

"How would I know? I wake up, in different clothes, no less, in the captain's quarters, who is a good for nothing _pirate_." She hissed the last word out the same way that he had said Lance a few moments ago, as if the word burnt her tongue.

The murderous rage in the Captain's eyes should've frightened Lizzie, but the adrenaline from the surprise of finding out that the Captain knew of her gender gave her more bravery. "That's why I'm in here, isn't it? To be your wench, to use as you please? Conscious or not?"

Lizzie gasped as the Captain stalked over, his face a few inches away from her own. "If I wanted to take advantage of you, I'd have done it the moment I captured you." Lizzie's eyes widened as he crushed his lips onto hers. Before she could react, he pulled away and stalked towards the door and flung it open. "And trust me, if I were to take advantage of you, you'd be conscious through the whole thing." He said before slamming the door and locking it. "And don't even think about leaving this room." She heard him growl from the other side.

"I hate you!" She yelled back, only to be met by silence. She huffed, and then sat herself down on the bed, glaring at the door, as if her fiery gaze would burn a hole through the door. She knew she'd be stuck here for a while.

---

He didn't know why he did it. Maybe it was the fact that she had looked so fragile before, and then all of sudden she was fierce and angry and she never looked more beautiful, with her hair wild and her eyes shining with fury. He groaned, dragging his hand through his messy hair. He could feel the stares of his crew, but they knew not to disturb him, and for that he was thankful. Now if Lance were still up and about, he knew without a doubt the little bugger would be next to him, annoying him to no end.

Darcy wasn't sure what he was going to do with him-her. The crew obviously already knew that she was a girl. And he knew their superstitious selves would continue to badger him and tell him that a woman on the ship is bad luck. For goodness sakes he knew that a woman was bad luck! And he also knew that he couldn't let her go. From the moment he saw her at the ball, her expressive eyes captured him.

--- Flashback from Darcy ---

He had been standing there off to the side, grumbling to himself. His friend, Bingley, had forced him to come to this wretched ball. Charles Bingley was a good friend, noble, trustworthy, and kindhearted. He, unfortunately, found it his job to keep Darcy in the loop of high society, often dragging his sorry ass to gatherings whenever he was back from his "business trips". Through the whole stuffy evening, he'd dreamt of going back to his ship and crew and sailing off. To the elite society, he was William Darcy of Pemberly, the man that owned half of Derbyshire and made honest money that amounted to 10 thousand pounds a year as a merchant. Only a few knew him as the captain of the Georgiana, the pirate ship that took over ships and plundered. Bingley knew, of course, and Darcy trusted him to not speak a word.

And why would the respectable Charles Bingley keep mum on the fact that his best friend was a good-for-nothing pirate?

Darcy's band of pirates weren't the normal pirates you'd find among the seas – the ones that plundered for no reason, killed for no reason, and destroyed for no reason. Okay, sometimes they got carried away, but Darcy usually reined them in. His pirates were committed to seeking out merchants that used their power and influence to make as much money as they could, regardless of whether or not their actions were honorable. Darcy always planned carefully, researched about the captain and its crew.

You see, there was never a bigger oxymoron than honorable pirates, but that's exactly what Darcy's crew was. At least, that's what he liked to see himself as.

So the minute they had dropped anchor at the port close to Meryton, and his friend Bingley immediately dragged him, kicking and screaming, to this ball. Darcy found these gatherings rather drab, especially with Caroline Bingley clinging against his arm.

"Darcy! Let's dance and show these low class people how to really waltz." Caroline said, batting her eyelashes and attempting to be alluring. Darcy mentally gagged.

"That's okay Caroline. I'm perfectly happy standing here and doing nothing." He replied stiffly.

Caroline did her ridiculous pout that was meant to be cute, but only resulted in Darcy wanting to run for the hills. "Please Darcy? It'll be so much fun."

"No thank you Caroline." He replied, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. "Excuse me." He said, quickly leaving the sanctuary of the corner (although not much of a sanctuary anymore due to the presence of a very persistent red head) and walked quickly to the other side of the room, hoping to get away from the much more annoying of the two present Bingley siblings.

He turned to get a glass of wine, downed it in one gulp, handed the empty glass to a very surprised waiter, and turned quickly, only to run into a soft body. He looked down, his annoyance already growing to find a short brunette looking up at him. Her eyes were wide as she gazed up to his face. His irritation must've been rolling off of him in waves, for she seemed to sense it and her eyes immediately shifted to a more challenging look. He could feel the shock on his face as he realized this pretty face wasn't just a brainless daughter of a noble. He quickly put his emotionless mask back in place and walked off, careful not to look back.

For the first time in his life, he felt a pull towards something that wasn't the sea.

And it scared him.

Imagine the surprise that he felt when he saw the same woman that had intrigued him with a sword in her hand fighting grown men twice her size. He hadn't known that it was her at first, but now that he thought back to it, she surprised him even more. This woman had more spirit than he thought. And when she screamed at him with tear stained eyes, he almost hated himself for killing the Captain, the man that had obviously convinced Elizabeth that he wasn't the power-hungry man that worked under Wickham. Almost.

And then somehow the girl had managed to escape from the brig multiple times. The girl was full of surprises. Her tongue was sharp, and she was so unpredictable. One minute, she'd be biting and sarcastic, the next she'd be funny and kind to his crewmembers. Unfortunately, Darcy only received the biting and sarcastic side of her.

And when he saw the storm suddenly appear out of nowhere, he knew that he had to get her downstairs, away from the waves that could rip her off the ship. She was tiny and he knew that she wouldn't be of any help during a storm. She'd distract him, for he'd be continually worried for her safety instead of worrying about the 14 other men on his ship. But when he saw her on deck suddenly, in the middle of the worst part of the storm, he was prepared to untie the rope around his waist that kept him tied to his ship and tie it around her to keep her safe. When he saw the wave falling towards her, it was like his heart stopped, and he desperately reached out to grab her, but she slipped from his grasp. At that moment, his only concern was saving her, and he did the one thing his father told him to never do during a storm– he followed a crewmember overboard.

He had managed to save her, but the few moments when she wasn't breathing felt like torture to him, and as he sat there, watching her sleep off the exhaustion that came with almost drowning, he couldn't help but see how beautiful she was, despite the men's clothes. Her skin was very tan from the hours out in the open at sea; her hair was a lighter brown than before due to the sun exposure.

Fitz interrupted his musings with a sharp knock on the door.

"Darcy. I think it's time to explain." His first mate said in a voice that Darcy knew as his serious voice. He didn't use it very often; Fitz was a very light-hearted guy, but when he did, Darcy knew it was serious.

"I know Fitz, I know." Darcy said, running his hand through his unkept hair. "I just don't know where to start."

"How about you start explaining why there's a woman aboard this ship? The crewmembers aren't happy about this."

Darcy immediately felt irritated, even though he knew he shouldn't. It seemed that whenever it involved this girl, he was anything but rational. "I never thought you to be a superstitious man, Fitz." He growled.

"Woah there Captain." Fitz narrowed his eyes. "I'm sorry if you felt that your crew didn't deserve to know." He said sarcastically.

"Look Fitz, I'm sorry. I don't know how to explain this!" Darcy exclaimed. "I just…" he sighed.

Fitz gave him a knowing look.

"What?" Darcy growled out.

"Nothing." Fitz smiled knowingly, his whole attitude immediately changed.

"Why are you looking at me like that? What do you know?" Darcy demanded.

"That's for me to know and you to figure out yourself Darce." Fitz barked boisterously, slapping his captain on the back.

"Fitz! What're you… wait! Tell me!"

"Don't worry about it." Fitz smirked before walking off.

"Stupid. Loud. Annoying cousin. Pain in the ass." Darcy muttered as he turned around and opened the door again to his cabin, only to hear the woman that had been plaguing his mind yell out "Lydia! Shut up!" As she buried her head into the pillow.

He chuckled, causing her to stand up quickly, only to fall back over. He quickly caught her before she hit the deck and put her back on the bed. He watched as she wolfed down the food, forgetting all lady-like sensibilities that she should've learned since birth. Thinking about her background, his temper immediately shifted.

Without thinking, he asked her, venom lacing his question. "So are you going to tell me why there's a woman on my ship, laying on my bed, whose arse I had to save from the ocean?" Even he surprised himself on how angry he sounded, but he couldn't take it back now.

Unfortunately, Elizabeth, with her quick temper that matched Darcy's, rebutted, accusing him of taking advantage of her! How dare she! More pointed words were exchanged until he somehow found his lips connected to the soft ones that belonged to Elizabeth Bennett. His mind quickly caught up with him and he stormed out of his cabin.

And that was how he found himself in the predicament, unable to face the woman that he couldn't stop thinking about, whom he had kissed a few moments before, which definitely did not help said feelings for this woman.

He heard snickering to his left. He turned; only to find his cousin Fitz laughing at him for god knows what reason.

He pinched the bridge of his nose. What was this woman doing to him?

**A/N: What'd you think? Please leave click that nifty button the bottom of your screen and tell me please! It only takes a couple of seconds, and they make my day! **

**Thanks for reading! Until next time you scallywags! ARGH!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Wow guys! I love you so much for all the reviews! They really make me smile. (: **

**Kay so this chapter was fun to write. I hope you like it! Please read and tell me what you think!**

**Disclaimer: I am not Jane Austen. Sadly**

_Previously on Pride, Prejudice, and the Open Seas:_

_Unfortunately, Elizabeth, with her quick temper that matched Darcy's, rebutted, accusing him of taking advantage of her! How dare she! More pointed words were exchanged until he somehow found his lips connected to the soft ones that belonged to Elizabeth Bennett. His mind quickly caught up with him and he stormed out of his cabin._

_And that was how he found himself in the predicament, unable to face the woman that he couldn't stop thinking about, whom he had kissed a few moments before, which definitely did not help said feelings for this woman._

_He heard snickering to his left. He turned; only to find his cousin Fitz laughing at him for god knows what reason. _

_He pinched the bridge of his nose. What was this woman doing to him?_

**Chapter 4**

Lizzie Bennett was bored. The only person she saw was the person she wanted to see the least. He would drop by every once in a while and bring her food. He'd drop it off without looking at her once and then would turn around and close the door. You'd think that he'd start paying more attention to her after that kiss, or at least try to talk to her. He hadn't spoken a word since he slammed the door to his cabin. That was four days ago.

She'd wait for the click signaling that he had locked it, and she would continue her boring day locked in the boring cabin of a boring man.

Seriously, he had nothing in his cabin except for a few maps and such. No pictures, no keepsakes, no nothing! The only interesting thing on his desk was a bottle of rum. She eyed it curiously. She'd never drunk before and she was, honestly, a bit scared to. She grabbed the bottle, playing around with it, watching the amber liquid swish around in the opaque bottle. She took of the stopper and sniffed it, coughing at the strong smell, immediately putting the top back on the bottle.

Lizzie thought back to the stories that her father had told her, stories of the high seas, of pirates drinking rum, of adventures. She missed him dearly; if only he could see where she was right now! Who knew all the stories that she had grown up listening to would lead her to a real pirate! Although at this point in her adventure, it wasn't very exciting, seeing as she was locked inside all day, doing absolutely nothing.

She thought back to the songs that her father used to sing to her as she fell asleep, the pirates song that she knew word for word. She felt a tear slide down her cheek as her memories transported her back in time.

"Yo ho, yo ho. A pirate's life for me." She whispered. Her eyes glassed over as she saw her father sitting in his big chair in front of his desk with some ale in his hand, telling her stories. Without thinking, she opened the bottle of rum again, taking a big gulp, coughing as it burned down her throat. However, after the burn resided, she felt herself feeling lighter, more relaxed. Now she understood why her father drank when he was feeling stressed or he had another fight with her mother. She giggled as she tried to stand up from the bed, only to sway from the sudden lurching of the ship. She took another drink while singing lightly to herself.

An hour later, after the bottle of rum was mostly drunk, and the woman herself was very inebriated, her volume had increased exponentially from a slight whisper to almost full out shouting, while she danced around the room without a care in the world.

"We pillage, we plunder, we rifle, and loot,  
Drink up, me 'earties, yo ho.  
We kidnap and ravage and don't give a hoot,  
Drink up me 'earties, yo ho!"

The door crashed open as a very annoyed (but very handsome, the very drunk Elizabeth Bennett conceded in her mind) Captain stormed into the room. He had heard her singing earlier, but then ignored it until she started full out shouting the lyrics. It was quite lovely at first, but now, he winced as she hit a particularly out of tune note.

"What the hell are you…" He stopped as he saw the now empty bottle of rum in the hands of the swaying and giggling woman, who was having a very difficult time trying to remember the lyrics of the song.

She was twirling around, her eyes closed with a big smile on her face.

"Elizabeth…" He said gently before putting his hand on her shoulder. Even though his intentions were to tell her to lay off the rum and put her to sleep, his good intentions were met with a very unexpected reaction.

A loud smack resounded through the room as Lizzie, in surprise and in self-defense, smacked Darcy squarely in the cheek. The room was silent, safe for a few escaped giggles as Darcy gaped at Lizzie with his hand on his cheek. Lizzie thought his face looked comical, as he seemed to pout as he stared at her. She immediately felt bad when she turned around and saw that she had slapped him, but the his face… Lizzie burst out in loud laughter as she lost control.

"Captain! You scared me! You shouldn't sneak up on people like that." She hiccupped. "I can't seem to remember the words of this song, you see. It goes something like something- pirates for me – something. I was trying to remember the words but then you startled me and now I can't remember what I remembered." She giggled again.

The side of the Captain's lips twitched. "You mean 'A pirate's life for me?'" He asked, quite amused at the sight of Lizzie, ignoring the sting of his cheek. He had been prepared to lash out at her, but her carefree laughter immediately dissolved the anger inside of him.

"Yes! That! You know that song is perfect in describing your lot." She swayed, and Darcy quickly ran to her side, making her sit at the edge of the bed. "Thank you." She muttered. "You know," Lizzie started, completely forgetting about the song. "Why are you always so nice to me one minute, and then you're yelling at me the next? I'm bored. –hiccup- I want to do something on this ship. And I hate you cause you're so mean to me. And the crew probably hates me now." Lizzie had tears in her eyes at this point. "You –hiccup- kissed me the other day. And I don't know what to think about –hiccup- it. Why did you do it?" Lizzie looked up towards Darcy with droopy eyes.

Darcy felt uncomfortable as those hazy brown eyes looked up at him. He felt he couldn't lie to her, especially since she looked at him like she trusted him. "I… don't know." He muttered, unable to find words. "I feel… intrigued by you. You surprise me and you're like no one I've ever met before." He was met with silence, and he jumped when he felt something hit his shoulder. He looked down to find Lizzie's head had fallen on his shoulder as she passed out from the large amount of alcohol she had just consumed. He sighed as he took the now empty bottle out of her hand, placed it back on his desk, settled her into his bed and then walked out, peeking into the room at the Elizabeth's sleeping figure before lightly closing the door.

He turned around, only to find Fitz with that annoying smile on his face again.

"What do you want Fitz?" He growled out.

"I didn't know you had it in you Darcy." He smirked.

"Wipe that damn smile off your face." Darcy threatened before stalking off. The loud, barking laughter he heard from Fitz as he walked away only succeeded in making him smile wider. Good thing Fitz couldn't see it.

----

Lizzie woke up cursing the rum that she had drunk earlier. Something was pounding the inside of her skull with a hammer and even the dim lighting in the room hurt her eyes. She was never drinking again. As some of the events of the previous night came rushing back to her, she groaned and promptly buried her head back into the very nice smelling pillow.

"Fun night?" A boisterous voice asked.

"Stop shouting." She groaned.

"I'm not shouting. Someone just can't hold their rum. You're quite funny when you're drunk." He giggled. Giggled? Can men even giggle? Lizzie wondered. All this thinking was hurting her already pounding head.

"Anyways," Fitz started as he hopped off of the captain's desk. "The captain has decided to let you out."

"What?" Lizzie's head shot up from the mattress. "There's no way. You're lying to me." She muttered as she face-planted back into the pillow. Her headache was going away, but that didn't mean that she wanted to leave.

"Actually, you're quite right." Fitz said. "Regardless, I'm going to let you out anyways, even if it does piss off our dear Captain. I never listen to him anyways." Fitz said nonchalantly. "Besides, after the captain came out last night with a very visible handprint on his face, the crew is dying to meet the person that can keep the Captain in his place."

"They've already met me." Lizzie deadpanned, irritated that the crew would think differently since she turned out to be a girl.

"Now, you should know about the superstition that women mean bad luck on ships." Fitz said. "Besides, they're all feeling mighty bad about picking on a girl."

Lizzie snorted. "Why would they feel bad? They're pirates."

"Now, now lass. Just cause we're pirates doesn't mean we don't have a heart." Fitz reprimanded her. "Ol' Lazy Eye Bart there, you know, the one that you kicked below the belt your first day here?" Lizzie smiled sheepishly. "He's the one that wants to meet you first. He's got a bit of respect for you."

Lizzie smiled. "I guess it's better than being cooped up in this boring cabin."

"I know. The captain is quite dull." Fitz nodded.

Lizzie laughed while she climbed off of the bed and followed Fitz towards the door.

"Oh and if any of the other pirates give you grief," Fitz warned before opening the door, "Feel free to kick them where it hurts. The Captain, no matter how mean and nasty he may seem, does not tolerate things like that. We're like a family you know? Or as close to a family as a group of bandits can get. We don't have anyone else, so we have to stick together, you get me lass?" He smiled warmly as he proceeded to open the door.

"Yea. Family." Lizzie whispered before walking out the door after Fitz, with her head held high.

---

Meanwhile, back at home…

"What do you mean Lizzie has left?" Frannie Bennett shrieked. "She'll ruin the family! When word comes out that our daughter has run off and probably eloped with some lower class, destitute man, no one will ever wish to marry any of our daughters again. They will be on the streets! What was that horrid child thinking?"

Edward Bennett pinched the bridge of his nose as he listened to his wife scream on and on about Elizabeth. He tried to assure her that Elizabeth is fine and she surely did not 'run off and elope' with someone. He was sure of that. Edward Bennett knew that his daughter could take care of herself and would never do something like that. He missed her dearly, but he understood why she had left. He was supportive of his daughter, however, he wished that there were someway of knowing how she was. He worried about her.

Her sisters had been shocked to hear that Elizabeth had run away, however Lydia and Kate quickly got over it when they realized they could have all of Elizabeth's pretty dresses. Jane was the most disheartened, as they were the closest in age and therefore the closest siblings. Mary was very sad that her favorite sister had run away (without her). She had buried herself in music when she had found out, writing pieces of music that expressed her melancholy. She deputed her music at the next ball, charming the pants off a young man, who had recently just asked permission from Mister Bennett to court Mary.

In all honestly, Mister Bennett felt that there was nothing to worry about. Jane and Mr. Bingley were fine; they still saw each other very often and he could see that Mr. Bingley was absolutely smitten with Jane. Mary was happily seeing her man. And Kate and Lydia still attended their silly parties.

A knock on the door broke Mister Bennett out of his musings.

"Umm, sir? There's a letter for you in the post." Melanie, the servant girl timidly said.

"Oh yes. Thank you very much Melanie."

"Mister Bennett? Who's it from?" Frannie inquired, ceasing her incessant complaints. It was almost a daily thing, and Edward Bennett had learned to tune out his wife when she chose to go off on another one of her tangents.

"I don't know yet, dear." He replied as he grabbed his letter opener and slid it under the wax seal. "Let's find out." He curiously opened the letter, noting the expensive wax.

_Dear Mister Bennett,_

_I am writing in regards to your daughter, Elizabeth Bennett. Do not be alarmed by this letter, she is perfectly save. I promise you that I will do everything in my ability to protect her and keep her safe. _

_Sincerely, _

_A friend. _

---

**A/N: So what do you think? Please take a few seconds to click that nifty little link at the bottom of the page and leave me a review! I would love to hear from you!**

**So I found this online pirate name maker, and apparently my pirate name would be Pirate Eve the Bitter. It has a nice ring to it, don't you think? (;**

**I want to thank all the reviewers so far again. You guys are my motivation to keep writing!**

**Unfortunately, the next two weeks will be extremely busy for me, so there's a possibility that there will not be an update for a while. I apologize in advanced!**

**Thanks for reading! And I'll see you next time!**

**-Pirate Eve the Bitter! ARGG!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Hey everyone! I suck, I know. It's been a while since my last update. It's been really hectic lately and I haven't been around my computer that much. This chapter I whipped out quickly because I felt really bad for not updating for so long. It introduces Darcy's character a little bit more. Don't worry! He's still that brooding hot man we all know and love. **

**This chapter was fun to write, and I would love to hear from you! **

**The feedback has been amazing, and I want to thank everyone that took the time to leave me a review. **

**And now, onward to Chapter 5!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own that hot brooding man, or anyone that you recognize in the story! They belong to Jane Austen!**

Previously:

"_Mister Bennett? Who's it from?" Frannie inquired, ceasing her incessant complaints. It was almost a daily thing, and Edward Bennett had learned to tune out his wife when she chose to go off on another one of her tangents. _

"_I don't know yet, dear." He replied as he grabbed his letter opener and slid it under the wax seal. "Let's find out." He curiously opened the letter, noting the expensive wax._

_Dear Mister Bennett,_

_I am writing in regards to your daughter, Elizabeth Bennett. Do not be alarmed by this letter, she is perfectly save. I promise you that I will do everything in my ability to protect her and keep her safe. _

_A friend. _

Chapter 5

Darcy POV

It was a beautiful day at sea, the sun was shining and the waves were calm. It was one of those lazy days, where the crew pretends that they're working when they're actually sitting on their lazy asses doing nothing. They didn't know that their efforts to look busy were wasted, for the Captain was miles away.

Actually, he was more like a couple of meters away, in his cabin, where a brunette that he didn't want to admit was anything but plain was sleeping. No one noticed his lack of attention, everyone just assumed that he was being the normal, brooding Captain he was. Even Fitz, his ass of a cousin left him alone, but once in a while, he would look towards Darcy, giggle (yes, giggle.) gleefully and turn around. The man was a child, even at the age of 25, 4 years younger than Darcy. The two had grown up together under the watchful eye of Lady Catherine de Bough, the nastiest high-class lady to ever walk the Earth. Her nose was permanently pointed to the sky as if it were attached to the sky with a string. Her hair stood higher than any man in the room by a good 6 inches, and her gowns reeked of money, her skin drenched in different perfumes and scents, mixing together into a most awful odor that surrounded anyone close to her in a cloud.

The moment Darcy inherited his parent's money at the age of 18, he hightailed it out of the house of de Bough, bringing his cousin along with him. Along with the money, Darcy inherited a shipping company, which had been under the leadership of a George Wickham, a 25 year old man that had been his father's confidant. He had an eye for business and the shipping company had flourished. Darcy never intended to take the company away from Wickham. He was a young boy, dreaming of adventure, the clear blue skies and sea that his father had written about in his journals, and of course, women. It was upon these adventures that he and Fitz discovered what Wickham had really been doing to bring so much success to the companies.

It was that day that Darcy started to hate his lifestyle, of parties and balls, of dresses and money, of dukes and duchesses and social climbers. The only man that he kept in contact with in the high society was Charles Bingley, who had become his best friend besides Fitz.It was also that day that Darcy took over the company, kicking the bitter Wickham out. It was also that day that Darcy and Fitz, still young and bright-eyed and rebellious with dreams of their childhood, decided to become pirates that rid the ocean of nasty men like Wickham.

Bingley, although never one for adventures, agreed to help them start up, and within a couple of months, the motley crew was assembled, with people from every part of the country. During this time, word had reached them that ships had begun to disappear, along with the shippings. The new crew, determined to check out what was sinking all these ships, set out to free the seas. Through the years, the crew destroyed many greedy captains and their crewmembers, returning the shipments, which often still had the stamp of the company on them to their rightful owners. They were the unspoken heroes of the sea. Everyone knew of them, but no one knew who they were, and no one spoke of them. Through these years, the Captain, once a young hopeful man, lost faith in society, his hopeful blue eyes hardening into cold ice, his brow often furrowed in frustration. He had closed off to other people, even sometimes his most trusted people, his crew. 7 years later, he was no longer the man that he used to be. 7 years later, his younger self wouldn't be able to recognize him. 7 years later, this man, hardened by the difficult years, was reluctant to open up to anyone.

7 years later, a brown-eyed lad, who turned out to be a lady, stumbled onto the ship. 7 years later, his once impervious shell was finally breaking.

And for the first time in 7 years, Darcy had no idea what to do.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"Ye did what?" Lazy Eyed Bart barked out as Lizzie recounted her story of when showed up at a bar where she knew one of her particularly nasty suitors went regularly to beat him up for touching her bum at the dance.

"I dressed up as a boy, challenged him to a duel, and knocked him unconscious, carried him over to his house, stripped him of his clothes, and left him out on the front step." Lizzie recounted proudly. The day before her mother badgered her to go on an outing with the nasty man. The next day, Frannie Bennett warned her to stay away from him, saying he was "bad news."

The crew roared with laughter, completely abandoning their posts and jobs (that they weren't doing anyways). The last hour had been spent getting to know their newest crewmember, which they all eventually accepted. Lizzie was surprised to find that all of them, although rugged and dangerous on the outside, were sweethearts on the inside. Even Joe, who was the quietest and fiercest one in the crew, had a history that made Lizzie want to cry out and give him a big hug. However, no matter how sweet Joe was, she was sure he wouldn't appreciate it, so she restrained herself.

She couldn't help but smile at how well everything had turned out. After hearing how she handled the Captain, the crewmembers seemed dazed at how she could talk back to their Captain like that. They laughed at her imitation of the horrible Collins, and even snickered (quietly) at her spot on imitation of their Captain.

Lizzie burst out laughing when she saw the look on the Captain's face when he saw her out of his cabin that day. He stood there, his mouth opening and closing like a gasping fish, his eyes wide open in confusion and shock. She gave him a huge smirk and a "Good day Captain," and breezed past him.

"She's got spunk, that one." She overheard Fitz saying to Darcy behind her.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

To say that the Captain was shocked to see Lizzie out of his room was a severe understatement. William Darcy felt his eyes bulge out as the siren that had been haunting him in his dreams danced by him, muttering a pleasant greeting in her musical voice.

And then his soon to be ex-best friend snapped him out of his fantasy.

He groaned as he heard his crew, who had completely given up on pretending to do work, laughed for about the 10th time that day. That woman had completely won over his crew. And he hated her for it.

Before he knew it, he felt his legs carry him over to the group, his ears struggling to pick up her sweet voice in the middle of the circle. He hid in the corner, where he knew she couldn't see him, but he could see her.

He gritted his teeth as he heard stories of the horrible suitors that touched her inappropriately, or the ones that followed her around like a puppy. He smiled as she recounted her tales of Lance, and how she took care of those suitors. He smiled at her smile, the way her eyes lit up when she thought of a story, or how she just seemed natural in this environment, surrounded by a group of burly, tanned pirates.

He frowned when he heard an imitation of himself. His crewmembers, knowing that he was there already, held in their laughter, many of them snickering and looking towards his direction. He growled in frustration and those light brown eyes snapped up to meet his, her eyes widening in surprise.

"Okay lads. Time to get back to work!" he commanded, his crew moaning and groaning as the got up and went towards their stations.

Lizzie stood up, ready to leave the scene. Darcy, determined not to let her off the hook that quickly, put his hand on her shoulder to stop her. She looked up at him with trepidation.

"I don't really sound that miserable do I?" He asked, a rare small smile, that seemed to become a lot more common now, appeared on his face.

Lizzie looked at him, her face solemn. "Yes you do. You poor, miserable soul."

Darcy looked back at her, his face shocked as he was caught off guard with her answer. Was she serious? His question was quickly answered as she broke out in a magnificent smile that made his heart skip a beat.

She patted his arm, as she walked off. Darcy turned as he watched her walk off, his face incredulous, his mouth unable to form words.

"Good day, Captain."

**A/N: That was fun! I love writing about Lizzie and Darcy somewhat getting along. Please tell me what you thought of this chapter! I would love to hear from all of you! **

**As for the next chapter, I don't know when it will come out. I'm sorry! Spring Break is next week and I'll be in New York City eating amazing Chinese food and watching Wicked and Mary Poppins on Broadway and I'm so excited! Unfortunately, that means I'll be away from my computer, yet again, so I apologize in advanced!**

**Although I may be convinced to sneak away for a while and whip up another chapter… *wink.**

**Anyways, thanks for reading! Please review! **


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Hi everyone! Thanks for your patience in my poor updating skills. I couldn't figure out what to write, but I think I've got it down now. I think. :P Writer's block is unpredictable!**

**Anyways, New York was amazing; Wicked was indescribable. I cried and my sister is subconsciously nodding in satisfaction as she's successfully converted me into a Wicked fan.**

**So Spring Break is over, sadly. But I'll definitely try to update more! This chapter is dedicated to geril, who got me off my lazy ass to update! Thanks! I have a feeling this will be happening a lot more. So thank you in advance as well!**

**So here's Chapter 6! Please read and review! I would love to hear from you. Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to write a review so far; it means a lot! **

_Last chapter:_

"_I don't really sound that miserable do I?" He asked, a rare small smile, that seemed to become a lot more common now, appeared on his face. _

_Lizzie looked at him, her face solemn. "Yes you do. You poor, miserable soul."_

_Darcy looked back at her, his face shocked as he was caught off guard with her answer. Was she serious? His question was quickly answered as she broke out in a magnificent smile that made his heart skip a beat. _

_She patted his arm, as she walked off. Darcy turned as he watched her walk off, his face incredulous, his mouth unable to form words._

"_Good day, Captain."_

**Chapter 6**

Elizabeth Bennett huffed as she stalked around the deck of the ship, stopping once in a while to lean against the side, glaring towards nothing in particular. The crew, which had become a family to her in the past week, knew better than to approach her when she was angry. They gave her at least a 5-foot radius and whenever she walked by a group, the group magically separated. If you walked closer and listened carefully (not that any of the crew dared to get up close to her), you'd hear her mumbling incoherently, with a few words that tended to stand out, such as "Just because I'm a woman" and "Stupid", or perhaps "Arrogant ass." Not that those words were aimed towards anyone in particular. Of course not. Certainly not towards the always charming and social Captain of the Georgiana.

Lizzie snorted. "Charming and social my ass!" She yelled out, causing the crew to look at her warily.

The Captain, obviously aware of her antipathy towards him, continued to ignore her and snapped at Fitz, who had been distracted by Lizzie's outburst during their conversation.

"Have you been listening to anything I've been saying for the past hour, or have you been staring at Miss Bennett?" Darcy snapped.

"No, I heard you. Something about the dock… news… supplies something." Fitz trailed off, mumbling as he looked at the ground, looking somewhat like a chastised puppy.

Darcy sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, something he had been doing a lot more since the Miss Bennett boarded the ship. "I said that we have to dock somewhere to get news of Wickham's dealings. I heard wind of some suspicious business with some of my clients back in England and I want to check things out."

"And what does this have to do with me?"

Darcy glared at him. "That means you have to come with me, because we have to stay at our aunt's house."

"No! Not Aunt Cat! Don't make me stay there Darcy. She hates me." Fitz pouted.

"We have to. You're the only one that can pretend to be part of high society here and the only one that can play the part during the balls, which we, unfortunately have to go to."

"What about Lizzie? She's a lady!" Fitz pointed out. "I don't understand why you won't let her off the boat!"

"Because I don't trust her Fitz! Did you not hear me when I was having that argument with her yesterday?" Darcy huffed, exasperated.

"But why? The crew trusts her already. And you know that the crew doesn't give out their trust easily. It took them months to warm up to Bingley after you introduced him to them!"

"Look. I just don't want her to get off this ship, okay? She'll probably go run off and tell everyone that I'm a pirate and ruin everything that I worked so hard for!"

"What exactly has she done to not earn your trust?" Fitz asked.

Darcy was silent as he thought back to the past week, of how they had begun to tolerate each other. (Flashback)

Shortly after her imitation of him in front of the crew, Darcy was greeted by the most wonderful smell coming from the kitchen below the deck. It was definitely odd, seeing as Cook (the crew always called him Cook, for no one knew what his real name was, and most of them were to scared to ask, especially since he sported a particularly nasty looking scar on the right side of his face) hadn't cooked a decent meal ever. It was always gruel on the boat, a mixture of whatever food they had left. Darcy suspected that Cook just threw in random kinds of food, not even bothering to see whether or not it would taste good. Regardless of whatever slop he came up with, the crew soon got used to whatever concoction Cook came up with. The gruel, whatever it was made up of, started to taste the same, and became easier on their stomachs.

Darcy's stomach lurched as he stopped in front of the kitchen, his feet magically taking him to the source of the delicious smell.

What he heard coming from the doors was definitely not what he expected.

He heard voices singing and humming from the kitchen. In the years that Cook had cooked for them, he had not once heard him sing. Actually, in all the years that Cook had been the cook on the boat, he'd never heard anything come out of Cook's mouth that was short of a yell. And one of those voices definitely belonged to Cook. The voice that was horribly out of tune and raspy. The other voice, Darcy recognized immediately, belonged to the obnoxious (and beautiful) Elizabeth Bennett.

As he stood there, shocked, he soon found himself surrounded by the rest of his crew.

"What is that smell?" Fitz questioned eagerly.

"Something smells good." The crewmembers agreed as they tried to hide the line of drool that was coming out of their mouths at the mouthwatering smell wafting from the kitchen.

"What do you think he's making in… is Cook singing?" One of the crewmembers questioned as he heard the ridiculous howling coming from the kitchen, followed by giggles that no doubt came from Ms. Bennett.

Before any of them could comment on this behavior, the door opened, revealing a very annoyed, gray haired Cook with a huge spoon in his hand. "What do ye want?" Cook demanded viciously. At this, the crew immediately ducked away, including Fitz, leaving the Captain to stand in front of the door by himself. "Oh, Hi Cap'tn"

Darcy rolled his eyes his crew, who were hiding behind him.

"You lot must be here for what me and Miss Elizabeth are making in here." Cook said, opening the door wider, allowing the sweet aroma to hit the crew in the face, causing a lot of them to groan and moan about how hungry they were.

Lizzie, hearing the complaints of the crew, popped her head out the door. "What's going on? Oh hi Captain." She smiled. "Cook and I were just experimenting with food."

Darcy nodded stiffly as he noticed how her wisps of her hair had come out from her bun, and how her cheeks were flushed from cooking in front of a fire.

"I daresay that it's been quite successful, don't you think Cook?" She smiled.

Cook nodded, flashing a smile towards Lizzie, showing the missing teeth he had in his mouth. He looked back at the crew, his expression immediately changing. "Well since you guys don't seem to be needin anything, seeing as you all been sitting around doin nothing, we will just go back and start on the meal that we have been slavin away in front of the fire to make." Cook nodded towards the Captain before shutting the door in the shocked faces of the crew and the Captain.

Fitz groaned before promptly getting up and knocking on the door continually. "Lizzie… Cook. Let me in. I'm so hungry. Please!" Fitz moaned as he persistently knocked on the door. Darcy snorted at the image of the grown man that was begging like a 4 year old that wanted candy.

Cook opened the door again. "No." He said before promptly shutting the door again.

Darcy chuckled before pushing Fitz aside and raised his hand to knock on the door.

"Come on Cook, give them a break." He heard Lizzie say from the other side of the door. He could imagine the smile on her face as she pleaded with Cook. Darcy lowered his hand, hesitating.

"I suppose." Cook grumbled before opening the door again, to Darcy's surprise. Not very many people were able to convince Cook to change his mind. "You can come in I guess. But don't make a mess in my kitchen!"

The crew poured in, mumbling words of gratitude and then shock as they saw the newly transformed kitchen. It had once been dirty and unorganized, but was now newly swept, with all the food put into separate places on the shelves.

Lizzie quickly helped Cook pour the stew in bowls for the crew, and sounds of pleasure filled the room as the crew devoured the food. Darcy was transfixed at Lizzie as she worked her way around the tables, smiling and laughing at the reactions of the crew.

He jumped as Cook tapped him on the shoulder, handing him a big bowl of the steaming stew that smelled like Heaven.

"She's something, isn't she?" Cook nodded towards Lizzie, his eyes crinkling as he smiled towards her.

Darcy didn't say anything, although Cook knew that he agreed. She had a certain air around her, that whenever she walked into a room, it would brighten up. Darcy took a spoonful of stew as he was deep in thought, only to stare down at the bowl in amazement.

"It's good isn't it?" Cook asked, winking at Darcy as he stared incredulously at him. "It was all Miss Bennett's doing. Don't look at me."

His look of wonder shifted to Lizzie, who had finished working the room and giving all the crewmembers their food. She looked up and caught Darcy's eye and smiled. He watched as she walked towards him, unable to move.

"Not bad for someone who's unskilled at everything, huh?" She said teasingly.

Darcy's eyes widened as he thought back to what he had said to Fitz when she first came on the ship. "Elizabeth… I…"

"I was just teasing." She laughed, before sauntering out the door.

"Close your mouth Captain. It's unattractive." Fitz said as he noticed his cousin's face.

"Shut up Fitz." He muttered as he proceeded to spoon food into his mouth.

She was indeed something. He just didn't know what.

0 – 0 – 0 - 0

And then it was there was the storm later that week. It was going to be a pretty big one, not as big as the "incident", which Darcy liked to call refer to it as, but it would be dangerous nonetheless, like all the other storms out at sea.

"Miss Bennett, get below deck!" He barked out, his eyes seeking her out. Adrenaline pumped through his body as he prepped the ship to withstand the storm. His nerves were on the edge as he waited for it to hit.

"No way! I'm part of the crew too! You are not stuffing me below deck again!" Lizzie yelled from across the ship as she stalked towards him.

"If I remember correctly, if you had obeyed my orders last time, I wouldn't have had to jump overboard to save you!"

"If I remember correctly," Lizzie hissed back. "If you had allowed me to stay on deck, I would've had the proper protection to prevent me from falling overboard!"

"If _I _remember correctly," Darcy emphasized. "_I'm _the _Captain_. And you will listen to what I say!"

"You do realize I'll just find my way out of that room and back on deck?" She glared back at him, her eyes staring into his icy blue ones.

"Get. Below. Deck." Darcy gritted out. He was in no mood to argue with her; he wasn't going to watch her slip out of his fingers and disappear overboard again. Perhaps the second time, he wouldn't be able to find her. "Don't do anything stupid. If you sneak back up again and the sea gets you, I'm not jumping back in to save you again." Darcy bit out before turning around and stomping off as he barked his orders to the rest of the crew, who scurried around in nervous anticipation for the storm.

X x X x X

_Okay, so maybe I should've stayed below deck. _Lizzie thought as she struggled to hold onto the side of the boat as another wave threatened to capsize the ship. She had snuck out again, as expected. Quickly, after getting on deck, she grasped a rope and secured it around her waist, as to not have a repeat performance of last time.

Screams of confusion came from all sides and Lizzie squinted to see through the darkness and saw the unmistakable outline of the Captain struggling to tie the rigging of the sail. She grasped the side of the ship and slowly made her way towards the Captain.

"Do you need help?" She yelled over the loud spray of the sea and deafening roar of thunder.

"No!" the Captain yelled back. "What are you doing on deck? I told you to stay below!" Lizzie rolled her eyes at him before reaching for the rope. He clearly needed her help. He didn't say anything when she put her weight into getting the sail under control, but she could still see his jaw clenched in frustration. When they finally overcame the wind and tied the sail securely in place, Lizzie glanced down at the rope tied around the Captain's waist, only to see that it had started to fray!

"DARCY!" She pointed towards his lifeline that tied him to the ship. She frantically tried to grasp her own rope to tie around the both of them before another wave hit the ship. She grasped his hand quickly and held onto him for dear life as the wave swallowed the ship and then receded off the sides.

They stayed like that for the rest of the storm, Lizzie holding onto the Captain's arm while they both held on tightly to the ship. Only when the first rays of sunshine peeked out from behind the stormy clouds did they let go.

"Still want me to stay below deck?" She smiled.

Darcy looked at her tiredly and didn't respond, as he was too exhausted to argue with her. The storm combined with his worry for Elizabeth and himself drained him of all his energy. He grabbed her arm and walked over to the rest of crew, who were thankfully safe.

Darcy couldn't help but think that if it hadn't been for Elizabeth, his rope would've broken, and he would've been swept away by the relentless sea.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

And then yesterday, their acquaintance-ship, or whatever they had, gave a turn for the worst.

Darcy had been hearing things about how Wickham's crew was becoming particularly nasty and swaying many merchants to his ways, raiding ships and taking the women as prisoners. In the past couple of months, reports about Wickham had gotten worse. However, Darcy had no way of confirming them unless he docked somewhere. He also needed to get more supplies; Cook had been complaining since Elizabeth helped him cook.

The tradition was that whenever they docked, the crew would go wherever they please and spend their salary on whatever the wanted. Darcy wasn't ignorant on what they spent it on, drinks and wenches, but he didn't say anything about it.

The problem laid in the new addition to his crew. No matter how much he tried to deny that she was part of the crew, she was no doubt welcomed with open arms.

He couldn't risk her getting off the boat and getting recognized. He knew for a fact from his sources in England that the Bennetts told the public that Elizabeth was spending her time with a cousin in America. If she were seen, he knew that it would ruin her. He also knew that if she were to dress as a male, she would be in danger too. He knew Lance had many enemies, and they would no doubt recognize Lance, for his features were unique and unmistakable.

Another part of him also wanted to keep Elizabeth away from danger, and letting her off the boat would just cause him to worry while he was doing business in London. William wasn't blind; he could see that she was very attractive, and he knew that if she wandered around London that she would run into some men that felt money overlooked manners.

And of course, Elizabeth, being the incredibly stubborn woman that William had come to know, refused to see his reasoning. She yelled, screamed, and glared at him, and did everything he expected her to do. He tried to recall the conversation.

"What do you mean you don't _trust _me?" She shrieked as she heard the completely made up reason that Darcy had made up to prevent her from leaving the ship. William winced as he realized that his completely made up reason did not make her any happier about staying on the ship. Although he was sure that she wouldn't have been sold on the idea if he had given her his real reason. He knew that she would start to rant about the unfairness of women in society and frankly, he just didn't have the energy to listen to it.

So instead of fixing his mistake, he was sitting there, getting more agitated by the minute, listening to Fitz, Cook, and some other members of the crew try to convince him to let "the sweet Miss Bennett" off the ship.

"FINE!" Darcy yelled out as he raised his hands in surrender. "You want me to take her? Fine. Miss Bennett, when we dock, you are coming with me and getting a dress."

"What?" Lizzie complained. "I don't want to go with you! I was going to go with Cook, regardless that you banned me from leaving the ship! And why do I need a stupid dress?"

"Because Miss Bennett, you are accompanying me to a ball." He replied with a sly smile, knowing that she hated balls.

He heard a satisfying growl in frustration before she stomped off and slammed the door to his cabin.

He turned to his crew and saw the questioning looks on their faces. "What?" Darcy asked. "Get back to work! I want to get to land by tomorrow."

**A/N: **Anddd that's it for this update! In the next chapter, Lizzie gets to dress her gender and go to a ball with Darcy. What happens? I guess you'll just have to stick around and see! (Psst reviews make me write faster!)

Thanks for reading and please write a review and tell me what you think!

Until next update!

YARR

-La Belle Rosa


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: I'm sorry it took so long for me to update! But here's chapter 7. It was a lot of fun to write, so I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.**

**I hope everyone had a great Easter too! I hope you had plenty of chocolate or whatever you gave up for lent (I gave up chocolate. Which wasn't very well thought out on my part) and also spent time with your friends and family. **

**So same as last time, please read and review! Thank you bunches to everyone that has already reviewed and I hope you continue to support me by leaving me a nice little note. They make my day and you guys are the ones that get my lazy ass of the couch and in front of the computer to type up the next chapters. **

**Disclaimer: I am not Jane Austen. I do not own Mister Darcy and all his hotness. Sadly. I do however own a laptop and a huge sense of procrastination for anything and everything productive. **

_Previously:_

"_What?" Lizzie complained. "I don't want to go with you! I was going to go with Cook, regardless that you banned me from leaving the ship! And why do I need a stupid dress?"_

"_Because Miss Bennett, you are accompanying me to a ball." He replied with a sly smile, knowing that she hated balls._

_He heard a satisfying growl in frustration before she stomped off and slammed the door to his cabin. _

_He turned to his crew and saw the questioning looks on their faces. "What?" Darcy asked. "Get back to work! I want to get to land by tomorrow."_

**Chapter 7**

"Repeat to me what I told you Miss Bennett." Darcy commanded.

Lizzie rolled her eyes. "Be mute. Pretend you're a regular, stupid, aloof girl without a voice or a brain inside her skull." Lizzie recited monotonously.

Darcy pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. "No. I said don't say anything stupid. Now come on." He said as he grabbed Lizzie's arm, leading her off the now empty boat into town. The crew had already left the boat to pursue their own interests, while Darcy felt the need to instruct Lizzie how to act in high society. It hadn't been _that _long since Lizzie's been around normal, boring people. "And please." Darcy added, "Try to act like a lady."

Lizzie made a face at Darcy behind his back, scrunching her face up and mimicking his words. "Please Miss Bennett. Try to act your gender. I know it'll be difficult to pretend that you are a woman. Thanks Captain for the words of advice." She said sarcastically. "Where are we going anyways?" She asked, frustrated at the pace he was setting with his long legs. He was, after all, a good 6 inches taller than her, and even though she was in very good shape, it was difficult trying to keep up with him without having to run.

"We are getting you a dress." Darcy's smile widened as he heard the groan he knew would follow.

"I hate dresses."

"I can see that." Darcy motioned towards her favored attire of men's clothing. Darcy feigned a pained look when the fiery Miss Bennett smacked him in the back of the head.

The walk to the dress shop took about another 15 minutes, and the time passed in silence. When they reached the dress shop, Elizabeth couldn't help but snort out in laughter.

"Madame Viola? Really?" Lizzie laughed out at the irony of the situation.

"It is quite ridiculous now that I think about it." Darcy laughed out.

"This would happen to me." Lizzie muttered as she continued to stare in amazement at the sign to the dress shop. "The Twelfth Night was actually my favorite book growing up." Lizzie said nostalgically. **(A/N: The Twelfth Night is a play by Shakespeare where the main character dresses up as her brother and befriends the Duke when she is shipwrecked in Illeria. If you've seen She's the Man, the movie was based off of this book! It also happens to be my favorite Shakespeare play!)**

Darcy looked at her was she had a far off look on her face. "I can see how it has influenced you now." Gesturing towards her clothes.

"What is this? Comment on Lizzie's choice of attire day?" Lizzie demanded in an outraged voice.

Darcy sputtered at her sudden change in tone. "I- I'm sorry."

"Relax Darcy. I was kidding." She laughed with a twinkle in her eye. Darcy noticed then that when the sun shined into her eyes, flecks of gold seemed to float around in her warm brown eyes. "So are we going to just stand here and stare at the store or are we going to go in?" Lizzie inquired.

Darcy laughed again and held his arm out for Lizzie. "My lady." He said pleasantly with mirth dancing in his eyes.

"Good sir." She laughed while taking his hand as he led her into the store. "Time for the torture to start." She muttered as they stepped through the threshold of the store.

"Oh my stars! My dear William Darcy!" A very large woman with way too much blush on made her way over towards the Captain. Lizzie shrunk into his side at the sight of the overbearing woman. Darcy elbowed Lizzie in the side, causing her to jump away and to, unfortunately, get the attention of the rather plump woman that stood before her. She donned a scarlet dress that seemed to have yards and yards of fabric that made it poof out, causing the woman to knock into people wherever she went. Her face was covered in way too much makeup and on her head was a ridiculous hat that looked more like a stuffed bird. She was quite short, the top of her head barely reached Elizabeth's chin, and Elizabeth wasn't a very tall woman to begin with.

Elizabeth threw Darcy a weary look, as if saying _this woman is going to dress me? Are you serious? _

Darcy shrugged and threw a look back at her saying _stop complaining. _

"So William. Are you going to introduce me to this lovely… lady?" Madame Viola asked while circling Lizzie like a bird of prey. At this point Lizzie definitely feared for her own health. And sanity. How this woman could tell Lizzie was a girl was beyond her.

Darcy didn't seem fazed by Madame Viola's uncanny ability to identify people's genders. "I need a ball gown."

Madame Viola merely nodded before taking Lizzie's hair out of the cap that she hid it in.

"This needs to go." Madame Viola sniffed and started poking and prodding Lizzie. Lizzie gave Darcy a bewildered look that screamed _what is she doing to me? _However, to Lizzie's annoyance, Darcy wasn't even looking in her direction. He wasn't concerned that she was possibly being sized up to be this woman's next meal or something.

"This hair." Madame Viola said in distain. "How long since this was washed?" She asked with her nose in the air, as if it smelled foul. There was a big possibility that it did. Lizzie conceded. She heard Darcy snort next to her. _Ah so he was paying attention. _She gave him a nice elbow in the side for being an ass before replying sweetly. "A while."

"Well you must be cleaned up. Now come!" Madame Viola grabbed her arm without warning and dragged her along to the other end of the shop. Lizzie stammered as she tried to keep up with the abnormally large and fast woman while trying not to trip on her equally abnormally large dress. Darcy merely followed at a leisurely pace, his face forever stuck with an amused smile.

Before she knew it and before she could protest, she was thrown into a room with a large tub that was already filled to the brim with steaming water. Her clothes were quickly stripped and thrown out ("These must go too." Madame Viola demanded.) She yowled in surprise at the scalding water. "It's hot!" She yelled.

"Good to clean off all the dirt." Madame Viola instructed before scrubbing down her hair viciously with a towel.

Darcy, who stood just outside the door, laughed at every "Ow!" and "Stop!" or any other declaration of pain that escaped loudly from Lizzie's mouth. He barked out in laughter when Lizzie cursed and was subjected to a swift flick in the head. After about half an hour, Madame Viola finally emerged from the room looking quite satisfied.

"I know exactly which dress will be perfect for your lady." She bustled off before Darcy could deny that Lizzie was "his lady." Not that he would mind if she were. Would he? Or…?

Before he could say anything, Madame Viola yelled from across the room, drawing the attention of the other ignored customers in the room. "Close your eyes William! You're not allowed to see!"

"What? Why?" Darcy whined but closed his eyes anyways.

"Because I said so silly boy." Madame Viola replied before going back into the room.

The room was silent for the next hour as Darcy paced back and forth in front of the room. He looked outside towards the setting sun and noted that the ball would be starting soon, and that they would need to leave soon if they wished to make it on time. He walked towards the door, with the purpose of knocking on it to inform them that time was running short, but was surprised to see the door open before he even raised his hand.

"Getting impatient?" Madame Viola asked with a raised eyebrow. She gestured from Darcy to lean in and whispered, "She's special, that one. So don't be stupid boy!"

Darcy looked at her, feigning confusion.

"You know what I'm talking about." She gave him a stern look. "Oh and I've already arranged for a carriage to pick you up here so that she doesn't get that dress dirty!"

Darcy looked at her incredulously. "I just know things." Madame Viola said in a tone that meant end of discussion.

Darcy was prevented from replying when the door opened once again to reveal the woman that was constantly dancing around in his mind, dressed in a light blue ball gown which, Darcy thought, made Elizabeth look like an angel.

Elizabeth walked- no floated towards Darcy, and only when she commented on his facial expression did he realize that he was still staring with his mouth agape at her. "Surprised that I can look like a girl?" Elizabeth asked, her newly washed hair bouncing as she shook with laughter. Her hair was put into curls and piled on top of her head.

"You look… uhh… different." Darcy muttered, his face reddening up like a tomato. Madame Viola, who was trying not to explode with happiness and excitement, painfully elbowed Darcy in the ribs. "I mean… you look good." Another jab in the ribs. "Beautiful." He managed to sputter out.

The smile that Darcy received nearly blew Darcy away. "Thanks Captain."

Madame Viola, now incapable of being silent for any longer, pushed the pair towards the door, where a carriage was waiting patiently for them. "Now remember Miss Bennett, you must call him Mister Darcy, for you are in polite society and you are a lady!"

Lizzie rolled her eyes playfully. Truth be told, she was becoming quite fond of the robust lady that dressed strangely.

"Now go have fun you two!"

Darcy held out his hand for Elizabeth to hold as she climbed into the carriage. As he was about to get in, Madame Viola stopped him with a hand on his shoulder and whispered something into his ear when he leaned down. He pulled away with a brilliant smile on his face. (Lizzie suddenly felt like it was difficult to breath in the stuffy carriage)

After the door was closed and the carriage rode off towards the house where the ball was being held, Lizzie gave him a quizzical look. "What was that about?"

Darcy merely shrugged and gave her a secretive smile.

"So you're not going to tell me?" Lizzie pouted, which Darcy admitted was quite adorable.

"Nope." He merely said.

"Well since we're into keeping secrets, I won't tell you how I think that you clean up quite nicely yourself." She quipped as she gazed out the window.

Darcy looked over at the goddess in front of him who was currently bathed in the last remaining rays of sunlight, causing shades of red to appear in her hair. Her eyes shined as she stared at the moving scenery.

Darcy couldn't help but smile. "Why thank you milady."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

The carriage pulled up to the huge mansion of the Radcliffe's, a wealthy family that was made around 7000 pounds a year. Darcy laughed at Elizabeth's amazed face as she saw the front of the house and its nearby gardens. Elizabeth, Darcy found, was quite fond of walks, and reminisced about the long walks she would take and would end up worrying her parents because she stayed out too long.

The light conversation quickly turned serious when Darcy felt the need to remind her to be the ears for him. He instructed her to inform him of any men that she talked to that happened to be in the merchant business and looked like they shouldn't be trusted. He didn't feel the need to tell her of Wickham just yet; he probably wasn't going to be at the party anyways. They decided that her name would be Hannah Edmonstone, a distant cousin from Darcy's family that he had just met.

She nodded solemnly. When she made the move to pull up the side of her dress, Darcy choked when he saw her creamy calf that had been hidden under the fabric.

Lizzie raised an eyebrow at his reaction, mistaking it as a reaction to the knife that was tied to her thigh. "Always good to be prepared." She spoke nonchalantly, as if it was a perfectly normal thing to do to attend a ball with a knife strapped to one's leg.

Darcy merely nodded while continuing to stare at her leg, even after she put her dress back in place. Truthfully, he hadn't even noticed the knife until she pointed it out.

"Uh… Mister Darcy?" Darcy's eyes snapped to her face as she spoke, for the first time, like a lady. "We're here." Darcy hadn't even noticed the carriage had stopped.

He cleared his throat. "Oh yes. Of course." He said as he climbed out of the carriage and offered his arm for her to get out too.

"Remember. Act like a lady." He said, not being able to resist one last joke.

"Oh hush up." Lizzie growled before jabbing him _again _in the side.

Darcy groaned. His ribs had taken quite a beating today. However, he didn't mind at the moment. He nodded to the help that opened the doors for them.

"Mister Darcy and Miss Hannah Edmonstone." One of the men announced to the room.

Darcy felt Elizabeth take a sharp intake of breath as people looked upon the new couple as they entered the room. He gave her a reassuring smile before leading her into the large ballroom. As he walked through the threshold with Miss Bennett on his arm, he couldn't pinpoint the feeling that he had to enter the room with her next to him. He couldn't help but look forward to the next time that they would be able to this. His happy musings was quickly interrupted when he caught the stare of a familiar man. His black eyes and black hair, combined with his haughty stance was hard to miss. Women who threw themselves at him because of his fortune surrounded him, and wore a sneer on his face reflected his disdain for Darcy.

Darcy growled as his eyes turned murderous.

"Wickham."

**A/N: So there you have it! Sorry no ball scene yet. But next chapter I promise! **

**So same old, same old. You came. You read. You reviewed. Right? So please click that nifty little button so you can leave me a review. Anything will suffice. Even a smiley face makes my day! (Reviews are like bribes of chocolate for me) **

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**Cheerio!**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Hi. It's me. I'm not dead, despite what you probably think seeing as I haven't updated… **

**Sorry! Sorry! Sorry! I know it's been FOREVER since I updated, and I know excuses suck, but my (extremely lame) excuse is AP exams, SAT, and an enormous case of writer's block. The past weeks have been a bitch, (excuse my French) and my brain is completely fried. Don't hate me. **

**Thank you to everyone that's been reviewing, you guys keep me writing. **

**This chapter was very hard to write, but at the same time very fun to write. So I hope you enjoy this chapter, and don't hate me too much for keeping you waiting for… what was it? A month? YIKES. **

**So if I still have any readers with me, please review and tell me what you think, and feel free to chastise me for being a lazy ass, because I definitely deserve it! **

_Last chapter: _

_Remember. Act like a lady." He said, not being able to resist one last joke._

"Oh hush up." Lizzie growled before jabbing him again in the side.

_Darcy groaned. His ribs had taken quite a beating today. However, he didn't mind at the moment. He nodded to the help that opened the doors for them._

"_Mister Darcy and Miss Hannah Edmonstone." One of the men announced to the room. _

_Darcy felt Elizabeth take a sharp intake of breath as people looked upon the new couple as they entered the room. He gave her a reassuring smile before leading her into the large ballroom. As he walked through the threshold with Miss Bennett on his arm, he couldn't pinpoint the feeling that he had to enter the room with her next to him. He couldn't help but look forward to the next time that they would be able to this. His happy musings was quickly interrupted when he caught the stare of a familiar man. His black eyes and black hair, combined with his haughty stance was hard to miss. Women who threw themselves at him because of his fortune surrounded him, and wore a sneer on his face reflected his disdain for Darcy._

_Darcy growled as his eyes turned murderous. _

"_Wickham." _

CHAPTER 8

Elizabeth turned to Darcy, raising her eyebrow quizzically as she heard the hiss that came out of the mouth of a normally taciturn and in control man. She tried to follow his line of sight but only saw the usual groups of high class socialites gathered to gossip and possibly sneer at a poor unfortunate soul that had the bad luck to be born into the wrong family. Elizabeth believed that it was these people that were often trampled on my people like Caroline Bingley who had more class in their little finger than some of these people had in their whole body. It was for this reason Elizabeth loathed these gatherings, preferring to stay in the library reading a good book next to a roaring fire.

But unfortunately, she had a task to do. She was to be on the lookout for any strange characters. Darcy had explained to her that most of the people attending this function would be connected to the shipping business, so she had to keep her ears open for any shady dealings going on. This was the truth of such company; under all the balls and shallow chatter of the rich and snobby was the darker truth that many of these people, who were said to possess the best of manners taught since birth, desperately clung onto their status by any means necessary.

Elizabeth put a comforting hand on Darcy's shoulder. She winced, as she became the recipient of the death glare, before his expression quickly changed.

Darcy sighed before looping his arm through hers and led her through the crowd. To say Lizzie was confused was a severe understatement. She continued to look at Darcy periodically as he nodded towards a few people he knew and made conversation with those that stopped him. Lizzie couldn't help but be amazed at his ease at slipping into the successful businessman of the Darcy family persona. He was so different from the Captain she had gotten to know. She admitted, he looked quite handsome; his face no longer in the permanent scowl that seemed to be in place when he was on the ship. Or perhaps it was just because Lizzie was a bit annoying, she conceded with a smile on her face.

She smiled, played the part of Hannah Edmonstone on the arm of the most sought out man from one of the richest families around. She ignored the glares of the harpies around her as they talked about her, often not bothering to keep their disdain to themselves. Lizzie stayed in character the whole time. She was quiet, pleasant, and seemed every part like a lady, but inside her thoughts were jumbled up in her head.

When she wasn't looking at Darcy who roamed the room with ease, she was looking around curiously, laughing to herself at the "ladies" of the room that were hoping and waiting anxiously for Lizzie to leave his side so they could dig their claws into him, and looking for this "Wickham" fellow that seemed to make a rise out of Darcy. Everywhere she looked, all she saw were gentlemen, laughing jovially at shared jokes with drinks at hand. Lizzie realized that it was silly she was looking for someone that stood out to her as inherently evil. She knew better that people were not what they seemed, and the most pleasant man could be a killer, while the most stern-faced overbearing man could be someone totally different.

She stiffened as she felt Darcy's hot breath on her neck as he leaned down towards her. "Would you like some refreshment?" He asked her, chuckling as she jumped.

Lizzie felt her face grow hot. "Umm… sure. That'd be… umm… great." She managed to stutter out.

"Alright then Miss Edmonstone. I'll be back. Stay right here." He emphasized the last sentence. She would've been angry at him for giving her an order as if she were some dog, but her angry retort was forgotten as she lost the ability to form coherent words when he gave her one of her favorite smiles (When had she decided what her "favorite smile" was? She asked herself) before walking off, leaving her alone to mull around.

She walked around aimlessly, making sure to stay close to the same area as before. As she passed an open door, she caught the smell of a familiar scent that reminded her so much of home. Unable to resist, Lizzie looked around quickly and slipped into the room. The sight that surrounded her made her heart heavy with nostalgia. Lined along the walls were bookshelves stuffed full with books ranging from philosophy to Shakespeare. Lizzie ran her fingers along the dusty spines of the books, noting the condition of the books that were recently added or worn from constant reading. She paused at the Shakespeare section and couldn't help but laugh at the very worn copy of _The Twelfth Night _sandwiched between two newer copies of other Shakespeare works.

"It seems we share the same taste of books, my lady." A soft voice said from behind her, causing Lizzie to jump and almost fall into the shelf, if he hadn't grabbed her around the waist. She turned around quickly and saw a handsome brown eyed, blonde haired man dressed in a military uniform. He was a couple years older than Darcy with wrinkles appearing around his eyes. The glow from the fire from the hearth lit up his face and Lizzie felt uneasy being around this man. Perhaps Lizzie just wasn't comfortable being around strangers as a woman.

"A beautiful lady like you should not be left alone and without a dance partner." He smiled at her. He seemed nice enough, Lizzie thought. "Could I please have this dance, Miss…?"

"Be- umm… Edmondstone." She said, panicking as she slipped up. She quickly agreed, hoping he wouldn't notice that she had the inability to remember her last name.

He didn't seem to notice as he took her hand. "So Miss Edmondstone, I don't seem to remember seeing you around before. May I inquire as to where you're from?"

"Now sir. You have me at a disadvantage and it wouldn't be fair if I answered your question before I even found out your name." She said pleasantly, while trying to ignore the shiver that went down her back when he grabbed her hand.

He laughed as they were led to the ballroom where couples were already gathering to dance as the orchestra was poised to start their next song. "I'm merely an old lieutenant that has the luck to have connections with old friends." He smiled. "But I guess you may call me George, as my last name has no connection to any one of importance whatsoever, and is therefore unnecessary."

Elizabeth felt amazement towards this man, who was able to be charming while surrounded by rich company. "So I see you're accompanied by the famous Mister Darcy." He commented conversationally."

"Indeed." She replied as nonchalantly as possible.

"He and I knew each other once." George said with a faraway look in his eyes.

"How so?" Lizzie inquired curiously.

"We were business partners. At least that's what his father wanted us to be. Good man, Darcy Senior." He replied.

"Please explain sir, for I am curious. Cousin doesn't really indulge me with the details. Says that business is not a place for a lady and I should keep to embroidering pillows and playing the pianoforte instead."

"Sounds like him." George snorted. "Ever the traditionalist. His poor sister has been subjected to his scrutinizing gaze. You know, she fell in love with a chap and wanted to marry him, but Darcy didn't approve and had him shipped off to the militia. Poor girl was heartbroken."

Lizzie gasped. She realized that there was so much about Darcy that she didn't know about. "And where is she now?"

"Last I heard she was staying with a relative somewhere."

"Must be lonely." Lizzie mused sadly. It was difficult to find love, and Lizzie ardently believed that once you find it, you should hold onto it. She didn't believe in marrying for money, and she promised herself that she would only marry for love. And for this reason, she also she believed she would live to be an old maid, for there were few gentlemen in the world that could tolerate her behavior. She felt her heart go out to Darcy's sister, wherever she was. "But wait, if you were business partners with Darcy, how come you're…" Lizzie trailed off.

"A poor lieutenant?" He answered, laughing bitterly. "My father knew his father, and they started the Darcy business together. My father owned part of the company, about 30%. When he died, he gave the rest to Darcy senior, telling him to give that 30% to me when I was old enough. However, when Darcy senior died, I wasn't given any part of the company, which I rightfully owned, according to my father's will. Darcy refused to give it to me. And I had no way in fighting for it, for a man of his stature had a lot of power, and there was no way I would win." George paused. "And the rest is history. I joined the militia, and struggled to make a living. And here I am, dancing with the prettiest girl at the ball."

Lizzie blushed at the comment. Her heart went out to George and she felt such rage towards Darcy. She knew that he could be cruel, but she seemed to have forgotten that during her time aboard the ship. They fell into a comfortable silence during the dance as Lizzie mulled over what George had said and it was quickly over. He bowed, she curtsied, and he kissed her hand before walking off.

As George walked off, Lizzie quickly realized how much time had passed since she had left Darcy. She groaned to herself. He was going to be angry with her again and she really did not wish to see him. She sighed before walking around in search for the melancholy Captain. She looked around quickly and made eye contact with icy cold eyes from the other side of the room that made her shiver. There was no doubt in her head that he was angry with her.

She took a deep, calming breath before straightening herself up and walked gracefully (or as gracefully as she could without tripping on the dress she wore) towards the glowering captain. "Mister Darcy." She curtseyed pleasantly as she stood in front of him.

Darcy bowed and kept his icy eyes trained on her, the rage still present. "I told you to stay where you were." He whispered angrily at her. To an outsider, it would look like they were having a pleasant private conversation, with Darcy leaning in to whisper in her ear as if to share a private joke in the loudness of the ballroom. Lizzie tried to smile pleasantly, but it probably came out as a grimace as she tried to keep her façade. "I couldn't very well reject a gentleman's offer to dance could I? I am, after all, a lady." She whispered vehemently back, stopping to smile at a couple that acknowledged Mister Darcy and his guest as they walked by.

Darcy didn't even take the effort to nod back at them; his eyes still glaring holes into the side of Lizzie's head. "Besides, you're the one who told me to keep my ears open. And what better way to do that than to have a conversation with the men in the room during dance. Although I have heard the most interesting thing about you Darcy."

His eyes widened. "What did that bastard say to you?" He hissed.

"You have no right to call him that Darcy. After his misfortunes…"

"Right his misfortunes. His misfortunes have been great indeed. What else did he tell you? No doubt he made me seem like a life ruining, cold hearted murderer." He scoffed, interrupting her.

"You're right Mister Darcy. In fact, I realize I know nothing about you. Although your assumption is correct. However, his account of you did nothing to change the way that I see you already." His head snapped towards hers as emotions ran through his eyes. "We need to talk." He growled out and quickly grabbed her so they could go talk in private, away from prying ears. They turned a corner and suddenly stopped. Lizzie, unprepared for this, crashed into Darcy's back. "Why on Earth did you suddenly stop? Give me a warning next time you-"

"Wickham." Darcy said without emotion. _Wickham? _Lizzie anxiously peered over Darcy's tall frame to see the man's face, only to find…

"George?" She asked, bewildered. The mask of the jovial man that Lizzie had been conversing with earlier quickly replaced the almost evil face of the man. So quickly, that Lizzie almost doubted that she had seen it.

"Ah. Miss Edmonstone. It's good to see you again. I thoroughly enjoyed our dance." He smiled charmingly, taking her hand and placing a light kiss on it." She tried not to cringe away, for she was once again wary of this man.

"As did I, Mister _Wickham_. " She said. She watched his face carefully, and as she expected, his eyes tightened imperceptibly. Had she not been paying attention and waiting for it, she wouldn't have seen it. She felt Darcy stiffen behind her, and she grasped his hand and squeezed it, telling him to keep his mouth shut and calm down. His temper would do nothing to help this confusing situation.

"Well I was just going to say hello to my old friend Darcy before I left."

"You're leaving sir? So early?" She inquired.

"Yes. I've had enough excitement for the day I'm afraid. The years in the militia have been trying on me. So good day Miss Edmonstone. It was a pleasure to meet you and I would love to accompany you in town someday."

"That sounds lovely." Lizzie smiled. "Good day Mister Wickham." She curtseyed.

He bowed. "Darcy." Wickham nodded at him before walking off.

She turned around and looked into the eyes of the confusing man before her.

"You have some explaining to do."

**A/N: Good? Bad? Ugly? Please tell me what you think and tell me that there are still people following my story after my long absence. (Sorry!)**

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	9. Chapter 9

Summary:

The open seas. Pirates. Such things should never cross the mind of a well-mannered lady. But Elizabeth Bennett was neither well-mannered nor, at times, a lady. Watch as she gets pulled into a whirlwind of adventure aboard the Georgiana as a prisoner, a deck swabber, and a crew mate under the watchful eye of the mysterious Captain Darcy.

Disclaimer: I'm not Jane Austen. She was probably better at writing her chapters in a timely fashion than me.

**A/N: Umm hi there? Remember me? You probably don't, and I apologize. It's all my fault. I could give you a list of excuses, but it would be exactly just that, excuses. **

**So here's the 2 month late chapter 9. I can't promise when I'll update again, because I really just can't seem to finish this. I tried over and over to write this chapter, but it just didn't seem right. I'm not giving up on this story yet, but know that updates won't come quickly. I'm sorry **

**Thank you to all the people that reviewed, I love you all and love hearing everything you have to say about this story!**

**And here's chapter 9. Enjoy!**

"_Ah. Miss Edmonstone. It's good to see you again. I thoroughly enjoyed our dance." He smiled charmingly, taking her hand and placing a light kiss on it." She tried not to cringe away, for she was once again wary of this man. _

"_As did I, Mister Wickham. " She said. She watched his face carefully, and as she expected, his eyes tightened imperceptibly. Had she not been paying attention and waiting for it, she wouldn't have seen it. She felt Darcy stiffen behind her, and she grasped his hand and squeezed it, telling him to keep his mouth shut and calm down. His temper would do nothing to help this confusing situation. _

"_Well I was just going to say hello to my old friend Darcy before I left."_

"_You're leaving sir? So early?" She inquired._

"_Yes. I've had enough excitement for the day I'm afraid. The years in the militia have been trying on me. So good day Miss Edmonstone. It was a pleasure to meet you and I would love to accompany you in town someday."_

"_That sounds lovely." Lizzie smiled. "Good day Mister Wickham." She curtseyed._

_He bowed. "Darcy." Wickham nodded at him before walking off. _

_She turned around and looked into the eyes of the confusing man before her._

"_You have some explaining to do."_

CHAPTER 9

Darcy struggled to keep his eyes looking straight ahead as he shifted uncomfortably under the glare of one Elizabeth Bennett. For the ten minutes, as the rode away in the carriage towards the dock, her eyes had been trained on him, and as the ride went on, the questioning gaze turned quickly into an icy glare that threatened to turn the entire carriage into a winter wonderland.

She huffed for the fourth time, tearing her murderous eyes away from the frustrating blue-eyed captain and gazed at the landscape around them, only to find that instead of being greeted by the familiar scene of the ocean, she saw that they were currently entering a new town.

"Where are we going?" Lizzie demanded as she realized that they were not going back onto the ship like she had thought, but rather Darcy had once again, decided to change their plans without notifying her.

"Tell me my dear Lizzie," Darcy eyes twinkled as he leaned in towards Lizzie, "what experience do you have with lock picking?"

Lizzie gasped as she tried to ignore the speeding of her heart as the charming Darcy suddenly reappeared. "Umm… I may have… done it a couple times?" Her answer came out as a question as she tried to wish her blush that she knew colored her pale face away.

Darcy chuckled. "Well good because I'm in need of your services."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

The driver dropped the two off at a nice inn, where Darcy proceeded to get them rooms, _separate _rooms, seeing as Lizzie was still a girl and rumors did no one any good. He grabbed a bag, which Lizzie hadn't even noticed had been in the carriage with them and dragged Lizzie quickly up the stairs. He opened the bag and thrust a package into her unsuspecting hands and ordered her to go to her room immediately.

Lizzie couldn't help but roll her eyes as she opened the door to her room and slipping inside.

She couldn't help the gasp that escaped her mouth when she was greeted by one of the nicest rooms she'd ever seen in an inn. Trust Darcy to rent two rooms in the nicest inn in town even though they had no intention of ever sleeping in it. The plan, Darcy had explained on the carriage, was to break into Wickham's secret storage house and get the papers with his business transactions. Darcy had, at the dance, heard from a source that had heard from another that Wickham had recently moved into town, and with him, moved his valuables, which meant his shady business dealings as well. This trusted source, after hearing of these rumors, immediately set out to learn more, and had ultimately been led to the believed storage house and headquarters of Wickham's underground business dealings.

Lizzie slowly unwrapped the package and found men's clothing. She quickly changed, tied her hair back and threw the cap on her head before meeting Darcy outside the room.

"Ready?" he asked quietly and holding his arm out for her.

Lizzie rolled her eyes and smacked his arm. "I'm not a woman anymore now you idiot." She said before stalking past him.

He chuckled and stared incredulously at the woman/boy walking away from him that never failed to surprise him.

"Captain?" She glared at him at the end of the hallway. "You coming? Or am I going by myself?"

It was Darcy's turn to roll his eyes before he followed her down the stairs and slipping out the back door of the inn. It would do them no good if they drew suspicion to them because they were dressed in servant clothes while exiting an expensive hotel. Lizzie followed Darcy as they walked quickly in the direction of the house. Lizzie knew that they had to hurry; Wickham would be out long, probably with some poor woman that had fallen for his charms, but as the night seemed to get darker and darker, Lizzie's nerves, which had never come into play before when she was "Lance," suddenly surfaced, as if this situation had somehow brought out the Frannie Bennett in her.

Darcy turned towards Lizzie as he noticed she was slowing down. As Lizzie gazed into the eyes of the captain, she could still see the clear blue of his eyes from the few dim lamps that lit the neighborhood, along with some infinite sadness that she suddenly noticed marred his features.

"You okay?" he asked gently. Lizzie shivered as she realized that the more human, caring Darcy had appeared, and she didn't know what to think of him. She could handle annoying, obnoxious, and bossy Darcy.

"I'm fine. Just nervous I guess."

She squeaked when she felt his warm hands on her shoulders as he knelt down to her eye level. "You don't have to help me if you don't want to." He murmured, his eyes soft.

Lizzie shook her head immediately. "I want to help." She said without hesitation.

"Thank you." He breathed out as he pulled her into a tight hug. It was over as quickly as it had happened, and Darcy was once again waiting for her to follow.

They arrived at possibly the seediest little house in the neighborhood. Lizzie knew that no one would ever suspect this house to be where Wickham would hide his business, making Lizzie doubt that Darcy had an untrustworthy source.

"I trust my source with my life." Darcy said, alerting Lizzie that she had in fact, once again, voiced her opinion aloud.

She nodded before fishing out a hairpin out of her hair and proceeded to pick the lock. However, it seemed the house was in much need of repair, because the moment Lizzie twisted the doorknob in an attempt to pick the lock, the door opened.

She looked suspiciously at Darcy, whose eyes narrowed as he took in what just happened. They both nodded towards each other as they acknowledged that they had to be extremely careful.

They snuck into the shabby house and were met by, not exceedingly extravagant, but expensive enough furniture for it to confirm that the person, whether or not it was Wickham, was indeed rich and definitely had something to hide.

Elizabeth suggested the two of them split up. Darcy's eyebrows furrowed as he thought of how dangerous it could be if Lizzie were found and he weren't with her.

Lizzie rolled her eyes as she lifted up her pants to reveal two knifes nestled in her boot. Darcy's eyebrows shot up as he stared at the sharp knives. He looked up to find Elizabeth smirking at him. She proceeded to point at him and then point towards one direction of the house with bookcases as she headed towards the other direction. Darcy reluctantly agreed, knowing that time was of the essence.

The pair worked in silence as they looked through books of information. They caught each other's gazes from time to time, only to confirm what both of them knew already. They'd found nothing so far. Whatever it was they were looking for, Wickham was good at hiding it.

She worked her way through the end of the alphabet; apparently Wickham was adamant in having his book collection organized. She drew her finger along the spines, looking for anything that seemed out of place. As she went through philosophers and famous writers, silently wishing she could take a few books for herself, she found herself standing in front of the section containing Shakespeare.

Her eyes were immediately drawn to the copy of the _Twelfth Night_, her eyes taking in the more worn quality of the book, as if it were taken out and opened on a daily basis. She silently prayed that what she and Wickham discussed at the ball was merely a coincidence and a signal that he knew that she and Darcy would be paying his business a visit later that night. If she found his plans in this book, then she knew that she and Darcy were in a trap. She motioned for Darcy to come over, her hands shaking as she grasped the book from the shelf.

He came over quickly; his eyes gazed questioningly at her.

Her heart rate spiked and she was sure if this weren't a trap, they would surely find them due to how loud her heart was beating against her chest.

She slowly opened the book and closed her eyes as a tear escaped her eye as she found the written transactions signed by Wickham.

"Darcy." She whispered, her voice shaking. His eyes, full of happiness quickly filled with worry as he turned towards her. "These are fake." Darcy's face morphed into confusion. "It's a tra-"

She was abruptly cut off as the door creaked open. All Lizzie saw were the cold and calculating eyes of one George Wickham.

"Why if it isn't William Darcy and Miss Edmonstone… or should I say, Miss Bennett?"


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Darcy, Elizabeth, Fitz, or any other character that you recognize! However, I do own a new computer, which doesn't have any of my old files (and therefore chapters of my stories that I had started/finished) that was on my old computer, which died after many years of service. (It was a hand-me-down, so I have no way of knowing its actual age. Probably somewhere close to the dinosaur age.

**A/N: *hides under desk***

**Sorry for any mistakes in grammar (I'm horrible at grammar) or writing in this chapter! **

_"Darcy." She whispered, her voice shaking. His eyes, full of happiness quickly filled with worry as he turned towards her. "These are fake." Darcy's face morphed into confusion. "It's a tra-"_

_She was abruptly cut off as the door creaked open. All Lizzie saw were the cold and calculating eyes of one George Wickham._

_"Why if it isn't William Darcy and Miss Edmonstone… or should I say, Miss Bennett?_

**Chapter 10 **

The silence was deafening.

"What are you talking about Mister Wickham? We met at the party, remember? I'm Miss Edmonstone. Are you not feeling well?" Lizzie asked, trying not to wince at the shakiness that was apparent in her voice.

"Oh you silly girl. You should know better than to think that I would fall for your lies." Wickham laughed. "I bet you're wondering how I found out, aren't you? You see Miss Bennett, I've been keeping track of William for years. I've known about his little band of troublemakers since their first act seven years ago. Oh you didn't know?" Wickham asked upon seeing her surprised face. "He has been killing people for seven years."

"Eliza-" Darcy tried to interrupt.

"Uh, uh, uh." Wickham taunted as he whipped out a gun and pointed it towards Darcy. "I think it's time to tell Miss Bennett the truth behind the pirate that she has been helping, huh?" He smiled wickedly as he turned to Elizabeth. "He's been plundering and sinking my ships and my business partner's ships for seven years. After all my hard work to build my own business after he took away my share of his father's business, he tries to take it all away. He killed innocent crew members, just like your previous Captain, just so he could get to me." Wickham smirked when he saw Lizzie's fierce expression falter at the mention of the Captain of _The Pride_.

"No, Elizabeth. Don't believe this son of a bitch." Darcy managed to say before the gun was pointed swiftly back at his head.

"So you're telling me that you _haven't _been killing my crew members for the past seven years?" He asked tauntingly.

"Your ships have been smuggling stolen goods for years Wickham. " Darcy spat, ignoring the pistol trained straight at his forehead.

"And do you have proof of these transactions?" Wickham asked innocently, waving his pistol around as if it were merely a toy. "No." He stated as he once again focused it on Darcy. "See, you and your father are the same. Brilliant man, really." Wickham said, his eyes gleaming dangerously.

From across the room, Lizzie could see the insanity that was starting the claim Wickham. This was the image of a man that had lost himself in greed. There was a stark difference between the two men. While Darcy's gaze was steady and unwavering, Wickham's look was unstable. While Darcy was calm and collected, even at gunpoint, Wickham was volatile. It was then that Lizzie knew that although Darcy had not felt the need to trust her with some much needed information, Wickham was bad news.

Slowly as to not attract attention, she slinked down towards the floor and grabbed the knife in her boot, hiding it within her trousers. Still watching the scene unfold before her, she noticed Darcy looking at her out of the corner of her eye. As if suddenly acquiring the ability to read minds, she could practically hear Darcy warning her, "Don't do anything stupid."

"…your father had figured out what I had been doing all those years, and for that, he had to go." He smirked.

"You son of a bitch!" He yelled, making the move to lunge towards Wickham, only to feel a sudden pain as a bullet hit him in the shoulder.

Lizzie screamed at the sound of the bullet going off and Darcy staggering against the wall, grasping his shoulder.

"Aw I missed." Wickham laughed. "Well I guess that makes this all the more fun. I can stand here and watch you suffer before I kill you, like I killed your father."

"You will burn in Hell." Darcy hissed.

"Now that's not very nice, now is it William? That just made me very angry. And you know what happens when someone makes me angry?" He asked tauntingly. "I kill someone." Wickham smirked as he pointed the gun at Lizzie, who had been standing across the room, unable to do anything while Wickham still had the gun in his hand. If she had thrown her knife, yes, she could've hit him, but he could've still shot them with the gun. And now, it seemed like it may have been too late.

"No! Not her! Please!" The captain begged.

"Will." Lizzie whispered, tears gathering in her eyes.

"We're begging now, are we?" Wickham asked gleefully. He knelt down, careful to keep the gun trained on Lizzie. "I quite like this. You, on the ground, begging me for mercy while I, the superior, stand before you. But unfortunately, you are boring me." He stated before standing up swiftly again. "So goodbye William."

"NO!" Lizzie yelled, and before she could even think, the knife was out of her trousers and sailing towards Wickham's outstretched hand. A sickening squelch, accompanied by a loud howl of pain told Lizzie that she had hit her mark. Instantly, she reacted, grabbing the book from the shelf, running towards the gun that was now laying on the ground, she grabbed it, along with Will, and rushed out of door into the dark night.

The adrenaline was pumping through her as she struggled to hold Darcy up, who was getting weaker and weaker from the blood loss. Lizzie held on tight, supporting herself and Darcy as she rushed towards the docks.

"Please Will. You have to hang in there." She whispered, tears streaming down her eyes. His white shirt was soaked red, and Lizzie knew that if she didn't get him back on the ship where she could stitch him up, he would surely die from the blood loss. And she didn't know what she would do if he didn't make it.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"What do you mean the Captain and Lizzie aren't back yet?" Fitz yelled when he asked the crew the moment he boarded the ship the next morning. "They should've been back hours ago!"

"We 'aven't 'eard nothin'." One of the members shrugged. "We figured the 'Aptain and Lizzie were avin' a bit o' fun. If ye know what I mean." The rest of the crew responded with uproarious laughter.

Fitz frowned. Something wasn't right. Darcy was always punctual and not easily distracted. And Fitz _knew _Darcy was a gentleman and wouldn't just treat Lizzie as "a bit o' fun."

"Fitz! Help me!" The familiar voice of Lizzie brought Fitz out of his thoughts. The feeling of relief spread through him as he realized that they were back. _Wait. Help? _He instantly rushed over off the boat and found the tiny woman carrying the wounded Captain.

"What happened?" Fitz demanded, bewildered and shocked at the state that the Captain was in.

"I'll explain later! Help him get on the ship! He needs to be tended to!" Lizzie demanded, her voice going up another octave as she panicked.

Fitz and another crew member rushed to help the Captain to his cabin, where they immediately brought the medicine kit. Fitz watched worriedly as Lizzie tore open his shirt, only to gasp as he found the bullet that was lodged in his shoulder.

His cousin's breathing was ragged, his face pale, and he had already lost consciousness.

_Dear God. I know that I haven't been the most virtuous of men. But please, if there is one thing you can ever do for me in my lifetime, save my cousin. _

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Lizzie immediately went to work once Will was laid on his bed. Lizzie prayed that her skills would be enough, knowing that it would take too long to call for a doctor. She had only had to tend to a bullet wound once, and it wasn't as bad as Will's wound. She worked diligently on getting the bullet out of his shoulder and sewing his shoulder up and then bandaging it tightly, pausing only to wipe the tears that were streaming down her face.

Only when she was done dressing his wound did she realize how much her hands were shaking and how weak she felt. She grasped William's hand as she sat next to his bed in the uncomfortable wooden chair that she had pulled up from his desk.

She found she had no words that could describe the fear that she felt at that moment in time. She sat there and watched every breath, taking consolation in the fact that every breath meant that Will was still alive.

The next couple of days were spent sitting by his side, wiping his brow with a damp cloth, cleaning his wound and redressing it. Lizzie sighed in relief every time she took the bandages off and found that his shoulder, although littered with dark blue bruises, was looking better.

He would make it. And with that thought, Lizzie was able to fall asleep relatively peacefully every night, holding his hand and listening to the soothing waves of the ocean.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Lizzie heard a quiet murmur of voices, but for some reason she couldn't discern what they were saying. A soothing hand ran over the top of her head, and she fell once again back into the warm darkness.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

_Pain_. That's what greeted Darcy when he woke up. He felt a comfortable warmth in his hand, and he forced his eyes open to see what it was. His eyes widened when saw Elizabeth's small form in his old wooden chair, slumped onto his cot and holding his hand. _What am I doing here? _Suddenly, the events of, was it last night? Or perhaps it was two nights before? He had no way of knowing how long he had been out.

_That asshole shot me! _He thought angrily. His anger quickly dissipated as he remembered the reason why he was still alive. _And Elizabeth saved me. _His eyes widened incredulously as he stared at the incredible woman next to him.

Suddenly, the door creaked open, revealing a slightly haggard Fitz.

"You look horrible, Fitz." The Captain noted, chuckling slightly, and then wincing as the slight movement hurt his wounded shoulder. Fitz's eyes widened in surprise and relief at the sight of the conscious Captain.

"Compared to you, I'm looking quite handsome, actually." Fitz replied, smiling uneasily. "You had us worried there, Captain." Fitz said quietly, mindful of the sleeping Elizabeth.

"Since when have you called me Captain?" Will asked, trying to diminish the somber atmosphere. Will's jocular manner faded as his face turned serious. "How did Elizabeth get me here?" He whispered.

"She carried you the whole way." Fitz replied. "Somehow she managed to carry you, a man who is probably twice her weight, all the way from the outskirts of town. She's a fighter, she is. She hasn't left your side in days. I practically had to force feed her."

The Captain sighed. _Silly, stubborn girl. _"That chair can't be comfortable." He noted, mostly to himself.

"Honestly, I don't know why you keep it. It makes my rump sore every time I sit on it."

"And she's sat here for…?" Will trailed off.

"You've been out for 3 days."

"3 days." He said flatly. "Help me get her on the bed." Darcy commanded as he shifted over towards the wall.

"Darcy, you shouldn't move with that wound!"

"Shut your mouth and help me get her on the bed. I can't imagine she's had a good night's sleep in the ruddy chair." Will grunted, ignoring the pain from moving his shoulder. "I really need to get rid of that damned thing and get a more comfortable one."

Slowly, as to not wake up the slumbering lady, Fitz carefully moved her from the chair to next to Darcy on his cot. She stirred slightly at the movement, but Will ran his hand softly through her hair, and she drifted off once again, snuggling into the warmth of his side.

The door clicked softly as Fitz left the cabin, but the Captain didn't even notice. He was too entranced by the charming and brave girl that was lying next to him.

**A/N: *Continues hiding under desk* **

**Psst review please?**

**And check out my new(ish?) story, Unadulterated Loathing. A modernized Pride and Prejudiced set in the background of Broadway! **


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I do not own P&P!**

**Came back to this story after, how long has it been? 2 years? I apologize for those who have waited and have wanted me to finish this story. I sincerely hope to do so! I hope you enjoy this chapter! I'll have you know the next chapter is in the works and I will be diligently working to finish it by next week. Thanks!**** As always, please leave your reviews! **

**Chapter 11**

It was warm. Not too warm, but warm enough for Lizzie to snuggle back into the source of the warmth. She felt the heat surround her even more and she sighed, content, her conscious flowing back into her dream.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Will woke up still in quite a bit of pain, but it was dulled significantly by the tiny body sleeping next to him on the bed. As if sensing his awareness, she snuggled into his good side even more, in which he put his arm around her and held her closer to his body. Despite the pain, the inevitable backlash that was bound to happen after what had occurred after the dance that night, everything at that moment could be described as the one word that floated in his mind as he slowly drifted out of consciousness. _Perfect_.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0

The morning light came in through the small window of the cabin, slowly rousing the small brunette. Lizzie blinked, confused and completely disoriented by her surroundings. Her eyes still closed, her mind struggled to take inventory of her body and its surroundings. As the fuzziness from sleep slowly cleared and her mind managed to make observations that were more complex than just _warm _and _sleepy_, she realized she was no longer in that uncomfortable chair that had most likely molded to her bum as she had sat pretty much without moving the past three days. She was in fact, most definitely not sitting in said chair; rather, she was lying _on a bed_.

She shot up quickly, only to groan as the feeling of vertigo brought black spots to her eyes and she collapsed back onto a hard, warm, and naked chest.

_Wait, a chest? _

Her eyes flew open as she watched Captain Darcy's eyes fly open with a groan when she had collapsed onto his chest. They stared at each other, and Darcy noted with amusement as the color slowly rose in Elizabeth's tan cheeks, evolving from a slight pink to a very dark shade of red.

Quick to try to assuage the tension within the air, Elizabeth squeaked, "You're awake."

"I am. And alive, apparently, thanks to you." Darcy replied, seeming to be unaffected by his half nakedness and the proximity of their bodies.

Lizzie opened her mouth to say something, only to be interrupted by the boisterous voice of soon to be ex-cousin (could you do that to your family members?), Fitz, barreling down the stairs towards the cabin and banging on the door. "OOOOH DARCY!" Darcy cringed, rolled his eyes, and groaned as his oaf of a cousin threw the door open in his normal unruly fashion. In fact, one would've found it hard to believe that Darcy had been seriously injured just a few days before by the way his cousin was banging about.

"Ah yes! Darcy! Lizzie! You're awake! Great. I've got some food from the kitchen, although I imagine it's not as good as what you cooked up while you were there helping out. Thank goodness Darcy you're awake because now we can steal Lizzie awake so we can actually get some decent meals around here since she had been worried sick about the tiny scratch on your shoulder."

"Fitz." Darcy growled out. Lizzie was currently in shock, her eyes wide and a smile threatening to break itself onto her face as she watched Fitz go about the room, putting the tray of food and attempting to tidy up and open the window, peeking furtively every few seconds as if to check in on Darcy and Elizabeth's state of, shall we say, lack of undress. The frown on his face showed his disappointment of the both of them being in the exact same state as the night before.

"Also, we've got a couple new holes on the mast and I know you ladies are wonderful with stitching, despite you being, well, you. It'd be better than me or good ol' One Eye doing it, am I right?

"Fitz."

"And Darcy, you really –"

"FITZ." Darcy yelled out, finally catching the attention of his errant cousin, who smiled a knowing smile at the sight of the two of them together, still lying on the bed. "Get out."

"Yes captain." He smirked, saluting him and turning around to leave the room. Before shutting the door, he peaked his head back into the cabin, smiled his utterly annoying smile that he had when he was up to something, and said, "Don't do anything I wouldn't do." Before closing the door.

The room was silent as both Lizzie and Darcy struggled to wrap their heads around the ridiculous debacle that was the first mate. All of a sudden, they both burst out into uproarious laughter, only to be interrupted by Darcy's pained groan.

Lizzie shot into action at the sound, shooting out of bed quickly to fetch her bowl of clean water and fresh linens to rewrap his shoulder. He protested, saying that he was fine, but the look that she shot him silenced him immediately. She sat down on the side of his bed and slowly helped Darcy right himself on the bed as he grimaced with every movement.

"It looks better." She noted after unwrapping the bandages, trying to look nonchalant as she was presented with his naked chest.

"It doesn't feel better." Darcy groaned as she cleaned off the wound slowly and carefully.

"You big baby." She teased, thankfully lightening the tension within the room and allowing Elizabeth's cheeks to cool off a bit. Unbeknownst to Lizzie, before she had started to painfully clean his wound, Darcy had been staring unabashedly at the pink hue that had appeared on Lizzie cheeks as it slowly darkened once again.

"You wound me by making fun of me, Miss Bennett." He whined, jokingly.

"No, it seems that someone else has already done that for me." She muttered back, smiling, until she realized what she had said. The light air had immediately disappeared between them, leaving a somber mood that seemed to darken the bright room.

Darcy leaned into her side, ignoring the dull ache in his shoulder, trying to get her to look up and at him. "I would like to express my eternal gratitude, Miss Bennett, for saving my life." He murmured softly as he gazed softly at Elizabeth's downturned eyes.

At that, she looked up and gasped, shocked to find Darcy so close to her. Their faces were mere inches apart, and she found herself mesmerized by the intensity of his blue eyes. "You're welcome, captain." She said softly. Time seemed to stand still and Lizzie's mind panicked as the both of them leaned in slowly. Thankfully (or not), none other than Darcy's stomach quickly interrupted the moment as it protested quite loudly and out of turn.

She laughed, the smile on her face temporarily dazzling Darcy, distracting him from the embarrassment of his loud stomach. "Since Fitz took the trouble of bringing us food down, let's eat, shall we?" He sighed and nodded, laughing quietly at his poor timing. Lizzie took the time to right her breathing and suppress the odd feeling of disappointment in her stomach after being interrupted. _You're just being silly, Lizzie. _

After their meal, his body, tired from being up for the past 2 hours coerced him back to sleep, but not before he flight a slight pressure on his temple and the blankets being pulled up to his chest.

As he struggled to figure out what the pressure was from, the last words that went through his mind as he drifted off to sleep was _her lips_.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Darcy grunted as he struggled to turn the wheel of the ship with his left hand. _Damn Wickham. If he had to shoot me, why couldn't he have shot me in my other shoulder? _

Suddenly, a short brunette that had occupied his every waking thought appeared by his side, casually helping him turn the wheel. And yet, he could've thanked Wickham for shooting him, for he probably would've never gained the companionship and trust of the striking beauty that was standing next to him now. He scowled. "How long did you say I needed to stay in this sling?"

She rolled her eyes at him. "Until it stops hurting. And judging by the face you made earlier this morning trying to move things, probably two weeks minimum. Now stop whining." She said, smiling as he moved closer to her so their shoulders were touching.

Below them, Fitz and the rest of the crew giggled (okay, the crew laughed, Fitz giggled like a little girl) as they watched their captain interact with the lovely Miss Bennett. They had noticed a change in their usually stone-faced captain. He rarely smiled now, as compared to never smiling before, and it seemed he stood taller and the weight on his shoulders was considerably less. He seemed gentler and kinder, and the crew joked around behind his back that he was becoming –gasp- a _gentleman_.

"May I pull out yer chair milady?" One of the crewmembers, Barny, joked around, resulting in loud laughter from the group.

"Don't ferget ta use yer salad fork, cap'an!" More laughter.

"Might I hae this dance, milady?" One of the crewmembers joked, while another one feigned shock and pretended to blush as they waltzed together in typical pirate fashion, if there ever was one. The resulting laughter from the crew was louder than ever before.

"HEY YOU LOT." The captain's angry words came from above. "Get back to work before I throw you all overboard you slimy dogs! You're no good to me if you don't work! No get your ASSES back to your stations before I hand them to you!"

The crew, unused to their captain being assertive after being in his cabin recovering for the past couple weeks and distracted by Miss Bennett upon leaving his cabin three days ago, scurried out of their hiding place and back to their posts.

"I guess that includes me then, Captain." Lizzie said as she pushed herself away from the helm, smiling softly at Darcy before turning away. He wanted to stop her; he really did, as he really enjoyed her company. In fact, the past couple of days he had craved it. However, her small body climb its way back up to the bird's nest was an image he couldn't look away from.

He turned away as he realized his staring had gone on too long and the ship had veered slightly off course. He looked at his maps, steering it straight again.

It had been too long since he had commanded his ship and his crew. And he had unfinished business to attend to, he thought, as his gaze turned back to the girl standing in the bird's nest, her hair whipping around her with the wind.

And it seemed, more to lose than ever before.


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: Find anything familiar in my stories? Yea that means I don't own them. **

**AN: Exciting news! I've reached 200 reviews! That is amazing guys. Thank you so much. I'm so grateful that I furiously typed away today and finished the next chapter for you guys as a thanks for continuing to read and leave your thoughts.**

**Also, as some of you may have noticed, I've changed my username! Brownie points to those that can tell what I'm referring to in my new username! **

**So here's chapter 12 my lovelies! I apologize for any and all grammar and spelling mistakes.**

**As always, please let me know what you think! Only takes a couple seconds! Also, if you are so inclined, please check out my other story, set in modern day Broadway! It's great fun. I'm having a blast writing it. **

_Last time on Pride, Prejudice, and the Open Seas:_

_The crew, unused to their captain being assertive after being in his cabin recovering for the past couple weeks and distracted by Miss Bennett upon leaving his cabin three days ago, scurried out of their hiding place and back to their posts._

_"I guess that includes me then, Captain." Lizzie said as she pushed herself away from the helm, smiling softly at Darcy before turning away. He wanted to stop her; he really did, as he really enjoyed her company. In fact, the past couple of days he had craved it. However, her small body climb its way back up to the bird's nest was an image he couldn't look away from._

_He turned away as he realized his staring had gone on too long and the ship had veered slightly off course. He looked at his maps, steering it straight again._

_It had been too long since he had commanded his ship and his crew. And he had unfinished business to attend to, he thought, as his gaze turned back to the girl standing in the bird's nest, her hair whipping around her with the wind._

_And it seemed, more to lose than ever before._

**Chapter 12**

"Captain! We've sighted a ship!" Elizabeth's voice rang out from the crow's nest.

Darcy, who was finally out of his arm sling, squinted into the horizon to find a barely noticeable white mast of a ship in the distance. They had been tracking the ship for a while now, and Darcy breathed a sigh of relief that the information he had gotten about the destinations and courses of Wickham's different ships had been correct. He had paid a pretty penny to a street urchin for the information, and he hated to have his money go to waste.

"Alright you mangy crew of bandits!" He yelled powerfully at his crew. "It's time." He said, smiling at the sheer anticipation in the air.

"Miss Bennett!" He yelled up to the crow's nest. Her head peeked over from the side and after staring at her captain's face, she had somehow discerned, without a word, that Darcy wished to see her. She grabbed a rope and quickly swung down to land right in front of him.

"Yes captain?" She saluted jokingly, only to frown at the serious look on Darcy's face.

"I haven't had a chance to explain my actions, Elizabeth." He muttered quietly, lowering his face to stare into her eyes. "The ship we are about to encounter is another ship of the man who killed my father, the man that we met who almost killed me" He said as a flash of emotion came as quickly as it went on Lizzie's face. "Wickham's ships have been smuggling illegal goods that he's stolen from people for years, and upon discovering this, my ship has been intercepting them and destroying his dirty crew for years. All of the crewmembers are paid based on the amount of goods they can smuggle, and therefore none of them are worthy of saving. The only exception I've ever run into, of a crew member that was completely clueless, was you." He said as his mind brought him back to his first encounter with Elizabeth as a boy.

Darcy sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair. "I know it was hard for you the first time, and you really liked the man who was the captain of that ship, but all of the captains of the ship know of what cargo they carry and are instructed to keep mum about it and carry them over illegal waters. We're about to run into one of those ships." He said, looking at Lizzie for any signs of discomfort.

"And? Captain?" She said, amused.

"You're not angry at me?" He asked, surprised. "He was sure that this coming incident would bring back memories of the captain that he had told his crewmembers to kill right in front of her.

"Look, William." She said, while the captain's heart stuttered at the use of his name. "I know he was shady. I actually had an idea that he was when I first boarded the ship. He would never let me into the cargo hold, and it was a miracle that he had let me on in the first place." She shrugged.

"Huh." Darcy said, startled that he didn't even have to explain that much. "Well, we're about to go into another fight. Would it be too much to ask for you to stay below deck again, or am I just wasting my breath?"

"You're crazy, Darcy, if you think that I'm going to stay behind." She smirked, her eyes shining at the prospect of fighting.

"Look, I just don't want you to get hurt." He said. "There's going to be a lot of men, and I know you're a good fighter, but – " He said.

"Fight me." She blurted out, interrupting him.

"Wha – what?"

"I said, fight me. If you win, I'll stay behind like a good little lady. If I win, I get to go aboard the ship. We'll reach them in probably an hour, and we'll only need at most 10 minutes to fight this out." She said nonchalantly, as if she settled arguments by fighting everyday.

Actually, knowing her, this was probably how she always settled arguments.

Darcy sputtered. "I – I'm not going to fight you!" He exclaimed. "I don't want to hurt you." He said quietly, his eyes softening.

"Who said you're going to hurt me?" She challenged. "I've fought as Lance for a long time, and I'm still here, aren't I? And it's not like we're going to be fighting with real swords. I don't want to gut you before the main event. We'll just use some sticks. First person to tap the deathblow wins. If one of us gets an arm tapped, we can't use that arm."

"You – you're kidding right?"

"Time's a ticking, Captain. If we don't settle this then I'll definitely be running into battle and you'll lose the chance of being able to stop me." She taunted.

Fitz, who had been eavesdropping from the side, clapped his hands in glee. Quickly making the Captain's decision for him, he yelled out to the rest of the crew, "HEY YOU LOT! The Captain and Little L are going to be duking it out on the main deck! Come watch the Captain get his ass handed to him!"

The crew quickly dropped whatever they were doing and sprinted to the main deck. Pillaging could wait. It wasn't everyday that someone challenged the captain. Even Cook abandoned his kitchen to come watch, bringing a pair of pretty evenly shaped sticks, throwing one to the captain and handing the other one to Elizabeth.

She smirked, swinging the stick around, checking the balance of it. "You ready, Captain?"

"Look, I really don't want to –" He was quickly interrupted by a quick swing that he very narrowly avoided. He heard it fly past his ear and looked at her in shock by the force she had put into it.

"It's do, or die." She smirked. "I wasn't joking, Captain." She said as she went into her fighting stance.

Finally realizing that there was no talking her out of it and hearing the crew scream and heckle at the both of them, he went into his respective fighting stance.

"Now, I want a clean match, you two." Fitz said solemnly as he stood in between the two. "Who am I kidding, we're pirates. Fight dirty!" He exclaimed loudly as he moved away, signaling the start of the match.

Elizabeth matched Darcy blow for blow as their makeshift swords clanged together between them, none of them managing to get the upper hand on the other, much to the frustration and disappointment of the crew. As the fight progressed and neither of them made any progress, something shifted for Elizabeth, and Darcy caught onto it as his senses went on alert. Suddenly, she quickly swung up over his head and he just barely blocked it. She had been holding out on him the entire time! He realized in shock.

Her blows were coming in faster and faster and he struggled to deflect them. It seemed like she was everywhere at once. She managed to tap his left arm, which he wasn't using anyways. He quickly tucked it behind his back, remembering the rule that she had stated before the fight. He in turn disabled her left hand as he barely missed her right. They continued to deflect each other, him using his strength, hoping to tire her out, and Lizzie using her agility hoping to do the same.

The crew was getting into it, half of them rooting for Lizzie, while half of them muttering that it was impossible, that there was no way the captain would let her win.

The crew was quickly silenced by a loud crack, as their shocked faces stared at the splintered ends of the makeshift swords.

"Well…" Lizzie was the first one to speak up. "Looks like I win." She said cheerfully.

"It was clearly a tie." Darcy said, bewildered at how she had arrived at that conclusion.

"I tapped you first!"

"Yes, because a fight has never been won by the person who was wounded first!"

"Well, regardless!" Lizzie's voice rose, causing the crew to slowly shuffle away from her as she was waving her splintered stick around. "I still get to participate!"

"No! You don't! You only said that if you _won_, I couldn't stop you. But seeing as you did _win,_" Darcy emphasized as he stabbed his splintered stick in her direction, "you can't go."

"How many of you think that I could hold my own if I went to attack that ship with you guys?" She asked, turning around in a circle to make eye contact with every single member of the crew.

Cook was the first one to raise his hand up, smiling a toothless smile. Darcy grunted. He always knew Cook was a softie. After the first hand rose, everyone else followed as Lizzie glared at each and every one of them. The last hand to go up was the first mate's, who shrugged apologetically at his cousin.

"Sorry Darce. She did almost kick your ass."

"It was a _tie_!"

Lizzie smiled triumphantly as she bowed lowly to the captain and then turned quickly to go grab a sword from their reserves.

Darcy groaned as he rubbed his eyes with both hands. She even had the crew wrapped around her little finger. He wasn't sure how he felt about that.

"Alright everyone!" He growled at his crew who were still snickering at what had just occurred. "It's time."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 - 0

The heat of battle was exhilarating. Lizzie had forgotten what it felt like to be in a fight, where it was just you and your opponent. Many people assumed fighting was all physical, that the stronger always dominated the weak. Lizzie knew, however, that half, if not more of it, was mental. The smarter fighters could analyze every strength and weakness of their opponent and use it to their advantage.

This brute that was standing in Lizzie's way, for example, smiled threateningly at Lizzie and charged at her, sword raised above his head. _What a barbarian_. She thought as she almost rolled her eyes. His strength was his sheer size. Every other aspect was just downhill from there. Little intelligence, zero form, all it took for Lizzie to disarm him was a quick sidestep and a leg stuck out in the way, sending him tumbling down the stairs next to them. He was knocked out instantly.

She looked up, only to find two men smiling their creepy smiles at her. "Hello there, lassie. What're ya doin with that pointy thing? You should put it down before you hurt yerself." The tall, lanky one said teasingly as they circled around her. She growled at them, adopting the defensive stance as she kept her eyes on the both of them with her sword pointed out protectively in front of her.

"Oh, the little kitten has claws!" The shorter, fatter one said as they continued to walk around her lazily swinging their swords at her and watching her parry every single one.

She surprised them by attacking the shorter one first, lunging towards him and disarming him quickly, his sword flying into the ocean. She then kneed him and knocked his head against the banister, leaving him on the floor when he passed out.

All this was done within a matter of seconds and she quickly turned to her other opponent who had been looking at her with a predatory look on his face. "You're a feisty one, aren't ya?" He said as he looked her body up and down, infuriating Lizzie and making her feel like a piece of meet. If there was anything that she hated most in the world, it was being objectified like vile men who saw women as mere property.

She growled loudly and lunged at him, only to be quickly deflected by a simple flick of the wrist.

"Oh, I don't think you'll be wanted to do that, lassie." He warned with a wicked smile on his face.

"Oh, I think I do, good _sir_." She challenged as she leapt back into action.

The sound of their swords clanging together seemed endless as the both of them were caught in a standstill. The longer they fought, the angrier Lizzie got. This slimy bastard kept smiling at her tauntingly and it unnerved her. Her body protested as the fight went on and neither of them gained the upper hand. She was getting tired and her muscles were protesting from fighting continuously. She knew that if she didn't do anything, it was going to be over.

She made a spur of the moment decision and sliced towards his neck, only to lose her footing as he quickly side stepped her as she tumbled towards the ground. She gasped as she felt something red and hot flowing down her right arm. She quickly righted herself and looked down, only to find the sleeve of her shirt bright red and her blood dripping down her sword arm and down onto the deck below. The man in front of her smirked. _He was laughing at her_!

It only served to infuriate her more and she leapt at him again out of anger, only to get nicked again this time on her side. She groaned as it went deeper than the wound in her arm. She knew better than to act out of anger, it was the first thing that she had learned when she was taught how to fight, but in the heat of the moment, she acted on it anyway, and she was certainly paying for it now.

She swayed on her feet as the blood loss was getting to her head as she kneeled down on one leg and watched the man throw his head back and laugh out loud. He was standing about 7 feet away from her, his image getting fuzzier and fuzzier. Lizzie knew she needed to act fast her she wasn't going to make it. She grasped at her bleeding side, putting pressure on it to try to stop the bleeding, or at least stave it, only to gasp out in pain. It wasn't look good for her.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Darcy POV

Darcy quickly disarmed his opponent and sliced his neck, quickly turning his attention to the next person. He walked around the deck, swinging his sword here and there and killing the crewmembers of the other ship one by one. He cursed at himself as he lost sight of Elizabeth the minute he boarded the ship, as a surge of men met him head on. It had only taken a couple minutes, but by then he had lost her.

Suddenly, he heard laughter coming from close by and he quickly followed it. Turning the corner, he eyes heart lurched and stopped in his chest. There kneeled Elizabeth, covered in blood, kneeling on one knee in front of a man who moving towards her fallen figure.

Darcy panicked as he quickly made his way over, continuing to engage and kill people that got in his way and attempted to engage with him. After slaying his third opponent and looking over towards Elizabeth who was still a couple meters away, he panicked, knowing that he wasn't going to get there on time when another crewmember charged at him.

"Elizabeth!" He yelled out as he slayed another, while another one seemed to take his place. _How many damn people were on this ship?! _He furiously slashed his sword, still yelling her name as he killed them one by one. When he finally killed every one of those bastards and sprinted towards her, he stopped in his tracks when the man in front of her convulsed, stepped back, shocked, before collapsing onto the ground. Turns out Lizzie had once again gotten her knife out of her boot and thrown it, hitting the man in the chest, but missed his heart. Darcy quickly sprinted over and stabbed him through the heart, killing him instantly, before turning his attention quickly to Elizabeth.

She looked up startled as her eyes started to go out of focus. She was swaying dangerously, and not because of the rocking of the boat. Darcy leapt into action as he saw her eyes roll into the back of head as her entire body buckled and collapsed. Thanks to his quick reflexes, he reached her in time and caught her before her head hit the deck. He looked around the bloodbath on the boat and thanked the lord that his crew had finished taking care of everyone else on the ship. All that was left was how they were going to take care of the prisoners.

He looked down at Elizabeth, who was covered in blood. He picked her up gingerly, careful to avoid her wounds, and cradled her head into his shoulder. He walked towards his crew who were gathered around the tied up prisoners, waiting for him to give the order on how to deal with them. They looked at their captain who had the look on his face of a man who could possibly lose everything very soon, who was helpless to stop it and was furious at the thought of it being taken away.

He looked at his crew head on, and with a low and deadly voice that would've sent shivers down any grown man's back he gave the order.

"Kill them all."


End file.
